Israel reaches defence deal with Bahrain in Gulf first

Israel signed a defence agreement with Bahrain on Thursday, its first such deal with a Gulf country since establishing diplomatic ties with Manama and Abu Dhabi more than a year ago.

Defence Minister Benny Gantz, making his first visit to Bahrain, said the memorandum of understanding, that covers intelligence, procurement and joint training, takes the countries' relationship to "new heights".

Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) normalised relations with Israel under the US-brokered Abraham Accords agreements in September 2020, breaking from decades of Arab consensus that ruled out ties in the absence of a solution to the Palestine-Israel conflict that assures the rights of Palestinians.

"Only one year following the signing of the accords, we have achieved an important defence agreement, which will contribute to the security of both countries and the stability of the region," Gantz said in a statement.

Gantz earlier called for deeper cooperation with Gulf partners to confront "maritime and aerial threats", as he toured the US Fifth Fleet headquarters based in Bahrain.

The defence minister toured the guided missile destroyer USS Cole, which is set to make its way to Abu Dhabi to help defend the UAE against attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

The USS Cole was the target of an Al-Qaeda suicide bombing in the southern Yemeni harbour of Aden in October 2000 that killed 17 sailors.

The US base in Bahrain lies just across the Gulf from Iran. The waters are crossed by hundreds of oil and cargo vessels every day.

There has been an increase in attacks on shipping in recent years that the United States and its allies have blamed on Iran. The Islamic Republic denies the allegations.

"Against a backdrop of increasing maritime and aerial threats, our ironclad cooperation is more important than ever," Gantz tweeted.

Gantz's trip is the first time an Israeli defence chief had visited the Gulf nation or that an Israeli military aircraft had landed there.https://t.co/u587i7Ti5b

— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) February 2, 2022

"We reaffirmed our commitment to stand united in defence of the sovereignty of our regional partners as well as peace and stability in the region."

A US-led maritime exercise involving 60 countries and organisations is under way in and around the Gulf, with Israel joining in for the first time alongside countries that do not recognise it, including Saudi Arabia.

The exercise comes at a time of regional tensions over Iran's nuclear programme and Houthi targeting of Saudi Arabia and the UAE with missiles and drones.

While Saudi Arabia does not recognise Israel, there has been much speculation the two US allies, who share a desire to contain their common foe Iran, will normalise ties.