Overview
- External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Alzayani co-chaired the 5th High Joint Commission meeting in New Delhi to review and upgrade the partnership.
- The two governments began negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, noted progress on a bilateral investment treaty, agreed to start Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement talks, and moved toward a joint working group on trade and investment.
- Both sides reinforced defence and maritime cooperation, condemned terrorism including the April 22 Pahalgam attack, and committed to intelligence sharing, cybersecurity collaboration and capacity building, citing September visits by three Indian naval ships to Bahrain.
- Collaboration expanded into space, fintech and digital domains, with a draft Bahrain Space Agency–NewSpace India Limited memorandum of understanding under finalization and ongoing work in healthcare and culture.
- Jaishankar reiterated support for the Gaza peace plan, Bahrain’s role in regional diplomacy was acknowledged, and people-to-people links were highlighted with India’s new e-visa for Bahraini nationals and recognition of the Indian community in Bahrain.