Foreign relations of Bahrain

Bahrain is a small island country that has played an important role in world affairs. Since becoming independent in 1971, Bahrain has worked to keep friendly ties with its neighbors and other countries around the world. The country follows the ideas of the Arab League about peace in the Middle East and supporting Palestinian rights.

Bahrain is part of a group called the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, which helps its member countries work together on important issues. It also belongs to groups like The Forum of Small States (FOSS), which gives smaller nations a voice in international matters. In 2006, Bahrain made history by choosing Haya bint Rashid Al Khalifa as the leader of the United Nations General Assembly, making her the first woman from the Middle East and only the third woman ever to hold that position.

During major events like the Persian Gulf War, Bahrain worked with other countries to protect Kuwait. The country has also been a strong partner with the United States, allowing American forces to use Bahraini bases. However, Bahrain sometimes disagrees with other nations, like when it opposed military action against Iraq in 2003.

Bahrain has had its share of challenges with other countries, especially with Iran and Qatar. But it continues to work toward better relationships and peaceful solutions, showing that even small nations can have a big impact on world affairs.

Relations with Thailand and the Hakeem al-Araibi incident

Main article: Hakeem al-Araibi

In 2018, Bahrain faced attention over its relationships and treatment of people when a Bahraini footballer, Hakeem al-Araibi, was arrested in Thailand on his honeymoon. Al-Araibi had been sentenced in Bahrain without being there for damaging a police station years earlier. However, Australia had given him safety as a refugee because he had faced unfair treatment in Bahrain before.

Al-Araibi was kept in Thailand while Australia and many others asked for his freedom. Finally, in February 2019, Thailand decided not to send him back to Bahrain, and he was allowed to return to Australia.

During this time, people talked about the close ties between Bahrain and Thailand, including visits between their leaders and business projects, like a new shopping place in Bahrain for Thai businesses.

Diplomatic relations

Bahrain has friendly relationships with most countries around the world. Since it became independent in 1971, Bahrain has worked closely with its neighbors to solve disagreements and support common goals.

The country respects the views of the Arab League on important issues like peace in the Middle East and rights for Palestinians.

#	Country	Date
1	Kuwait	19 August 1971
2	United Kingdom	21 August 1971
3	Saudi Arabia	29 September 1971
4	India	12 October 1971
5	Pakistan	14 October 1971
6	United States	14 October 1971
7	Qatar	1971
8	United Arab Emirates	1971
9	Iraq	18 January 1972
10	France	15 February 1972
11	Australia	24 April 1972
12	Japan	2 May 1972
13	Netherlands	2 May 1972
14	Yemen	13 May 1972
15	Germany	17 May 1972
16	Lebanon	29 May 1972
17	Afghanistan	1 June 1972
18	Egypt	5 June 1972
19	Jordan	10 June 1972
20	Tunisia	25 June 1972
21	Somalia	29 October 1972
22	Spain	15 November 1972
23	Sudan	4 December 1972
—	Iran (severed)	9 December 1972
24	Chad	10 December 1972
25	Canada	2 February 1973
26	Morocco	5 March 1973
27	Turkey	12 April 1973
28	Mauritania	30 April 1973
29	Norway	15 July 1973
30	Greece	28 August 1973
31	Switzerland	12 September 1973
32	Italy	16 December 1973
33	Guinea	5 January 1974
34	Sweden	25 February 1974
35	Argentina	18 March 1974
36	Ireland	18 May 1974
37	Bangladesh	6 June 1974
38	Denmark	10 August 1974
39	Malta	4 November 1974
40	Niger	11 November 1974
41	Malaysia	25 November 1974
42	Finland	23 January 1975
43	Syria	23 January 1975
44	Libya	22 February 1975
45	Cameroon	20 March 1975
46	Austria	18 May 1975
47	Mexico	5 August 1975
48	Gabon	8 November 1975
49	Mauritius	12 February 1976
50	Brazil	23 February 1976
51	South Korea	17 April 1976
52	Portugal	10 July 1976
53	Lesotho	24 July 1976
54	Nepal	13 January 1977
55	Thailand	15 January 1977
56	Venezuela	31 May 1977
57	Mali	6 June 1977
58	Burundi	27 June 1977
59	Ghana	9 April 1978
60	Iceland	24 May 1978
61	Philippines	27 November 1978
62	Tanzania	1978
63	Oman	13 June 1979
64	Luxembourg	14 March 1980
65	Maldives	24 March 1980
66	Democratic Republic of the Congo	3 June 1980
67	Belgium	2 December 1980
68	Senegal	13 December 1981
69	Cyprus	14 January 1982
70	Zambia	24 January 1983
71	Chile	6 February 1983
72	Djibouti	6 February 1983
73	Gambia	6 February 1983
74	Seychelles	4 May 1983
75	Algeria	19 November 1983
76	Indonesia	23 July 1984
77	New Zealand	23 July 1984
78	Comoros	1984
79	Singapore	30 June 1985
80	Haiti	15 September 1985
81	Brunei	24 September 1988
—	State of Palestine	3 January 1989
82	Burkina Faso	25 February 1989
83	China	18 April 1989
84	Colombia	18 April 1989
85	Panama	27 April 1989
86	Serbia	31 August 1989
87	Hungary	3 March 1990
88	Russia	29 September 1990
89	Romania	10 March 1991
90	Poland	22 April 1991
91	Nicaragua	12 August 1991
92	Bulgaria	15 October 1991
93	Bhutan	6 January 1992
94	Bosnia and Herzegovina	3 May 1992
95	Kazakhstan	28 May 1992
96	Uzbekistan	28 May 1992
97	Sri Lanka	27 June 1992
98	Ukraine	20 July 1992
99	Croatia	18 January 1993
100	Albania	10 May 1993
101	Georgia	10 May 1993
102	Czech Republic	14 June 1993
103	South Africa	13 September 1993
104	Uganda	2 October 1993
105	Cuba	15 June 1994
106	Slovakia	22 March 1995
107	Vietnam	31 March 1995
108	Tajikistan	20 May 1995
109	Uruguay	25 May 1995
110	Ivory Coast	17 June 1995
111	Lithuania	3 July 1995
112	Eritrea	2 December 1995
113	Turkmenistan	15 December 1995
114	Kyrgyzstan	9 February 1996
115	Slovenia	28 February 1996
116	Zimbabwe	27 June 1996
117	Belarus	1 July 1996
118	North Macedonia	11 September 1996
119	Armenia	15 October 1996
120	Azerbaijan	6 November 1996
121	São Tomé and Príncipe	27 October 1997
122	Mozambique	3 November 1997
123	Guyana	19 November 1997
124	Rwanda	2 March 1998
125	Mongolia	16 May 1998
126	Malawi	9 June 1998
127	Republic of the Congo	9 June 1999
128	El Salvador	16 June 1999
129	Suriname	10 November 1999
130	Ethiopia	28 November 1999
—	Holy See	12 January 2000
131	Latvia	27 March 2000
132	Ecuador	26 June 2000
133	Honduras	27 June 2000
134	North Korea	23 May 2001
135	Laos	15 December 2002
136	Moldova	7 April 2004
137	Estonia	27 April 2004
138	Cape Verde	17 March 2005
139	Liechtenstein	1 April 2005
140	Paraguay	6 May 2005
141	Eswatini	9 September 2005
142	Belize	14 December 2005
143	Costa Rica	22 September 2006
144	Antigua and Barbuda	20 October 2006
145	Andorra	4 May 2007
146	Guatemala	21 May 2007
147	Dominican Republic	22 October 2007
148	Barbados	12 March 2008
149	Cambodia	29 June 2009
150	Peru	22 September 2009
151	Montenegro	25 September 2009
152	Myanmar	10 November 2009
153	Bahamas	25 September 2010
154	Fiji	25 September 2010
155	Kenya	25 September 2010
156	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	28 September 2012
157	South Sudan	28 September 2012
158	Monaco	23 September 2013
159	Angola	26 September 2013
—	Kosovo	12 March 2014
160	Kiribati	25 September 2018
161	Saint Kitts and Nevis	27 September 2018
162	Jamaica	28 September 2018
163	Palau	28 September 2018
164	San Marino	25 September 2019
165	Timor-Leste	27 September 2019
166	Israel	18 October 2020
167	Central African Republic	24 March 2022
168	Sierra Leone	8 June 2022
169	Tonga	19 September 2022
170	Federated States of Micronesia	21 September 2022
171	Solomon Islands	21 September 2022
172	Togo	21 September 2022
173	Trinidad and Tobago	21 September 2022
174	Dominica	23 September 2022
175	Madagascar	23 September 2022
176	Saint Lucia	13 December 2022
177	Samoa	27 April 2023
178	Nauru	4 May 2023
179	Papua New Guinea	1 June 2023
180	Grenada	19 September 2023
181	Benin	21 September 2023
182	Bolivia	22 September 2023
183	Vanuatu	9 February 2024
184	Equatorial Guinea	24 September 2024
185	Liberia	26 September 2024
186	Namibia	26 September 2024
187	Nigeria	9 February 2025

Bilateral relations

Bahrain plays a calm and helpful role in the region. Since it became independent in 1971, Bahrain has made friends with most of its neighbors and the rest of the world. The country works closely with nearby states to solve problems and find common ground.

Country	Formal Relations Began
Armenia
France
Germany
India
Iran
Iraq
Israel
Italy
Kazakhstan
Kosovo	13 March 2014
Kuwait
Malaysia
Pakistan
Portugal
Qatar
Russia
Saudi Arabia
South Korea
Spain
Syria
Turkey	4 December 1973
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom	21 August 1971
United States