The countries are celebrating the golden jubilee of the establishment of their diplomatic relations this year

Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan will pay an official visit to the Kingdom of Bahrain from August 30 to September 1, 2021.

This will be his first visit to the country in an official capacity, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement on Sunday.

During the visit, the MOS will hold discussions with Bahraini Ministers and dignitaries. He will also meet a wide cross-section of Indian community in Bahrain, including those in health, education, business and social service.

Both countries are celebrating the golden jubilee of the establishment of their diplomatic relations in 2021.

India and Bahrain share excellent political, economic and cultural relations which have further strengthened in the past few years, the statement noted.

Both countries have cooperated closely during the Covid-19 pandemic.

EAM Dr. S. Jaishankar visited Bahrain in November 2020. Bahrain’s Foreign Minister, Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani visited India in April 2021 when he and EAM chaired the Third High Joint Commission between India and Bahrain.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited Bahrain in August 2019.

According to the MEA statement, the Indian community numbers about 350,000 in the Kingdom of Bahrain and enjoys great goodwill of Bahraini leadership.

India-Bahrain bilateral trade is around USD 1 billion and has shown an increasing trend, it added.