India, Bahrain to set up joint commission to boost ties

India and Bahrain Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for establishing a high joint commission to boost cooperation between the two countries.

The two countries also signed an MoU for cooperation in the fields of youth and sports. Another MoU was signed between the Foreign Service Institute of India's external affairs ministry and the Diplomatic Institute of Bahrain's ministry of foreign affairs.

The agreements were signed during the visit of King Hamad bin Isa al Khalifa of Bahrain, who arrived here Tuesday on a three-day state visit at the head of a high-level official delegation.

According to a press release of the external affairs ministry, the MoUs on establishing high joint commission and the foreign service institutes were signed by External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid and Bahrain's Minister of Foreign Affairs Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed al Khalifa.The MoU for establishing the high joint commission will replace the existing joint committee for technical and economic cooperation.

The commission will be chaired by the foreign ministers of the two countries and will serve as an umbrella framework for all bilateral cooperation between the two countries. The MoU on cooperation in the fields of youth and sports was signed by Khurshid and Chairman of Bahrain's Supreme Council for Youth and Sports Prince Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa.