By Ahmed al-Masry
MANAMA (AA): Bahraini Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa and British counterpart Prince Charles this week inaugurated a new “facility” for Britain’s Royal Navy in Bahrain’s Salman Military Port, according to reports in Bahrain’s official news agency. Prince Charles has come under renewed criticism over human rights abuses in Bahrain after he opened part of a new £30m naval base gifted to Britain by the Gulf state.
The vast majority of the cost is being met by Bahrain, with Britain contributing £6.4m towards fitting it out.
There have been accusations from campaigners that Britain and its representatives, including the Prince, are failing to press Bahrain on its poor human rights record. Pro-democracy protests during the Arab Spring in 2011 were brutally crushed by the regime.
Leading human rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have criticised the British Government for failing to exert more pressure on the Bahraini regime over allegations of torture and arbitrary arrest.
In a speech given on the sidelines of Thursday’s inauguration, Prince Salman praised the new maritime facility.
“The commitment of both kingdoms to developing a framework for joint military cooperation with strategic international partners will help maintain the region’s security and stability, especially given the challenges we now face,” he said.
Last week, Bahrain’s government denied a series of news reports alleging that a British “military base” was being built on its territory.
In recent days, however, the international media reported that Prince Charles planned to take part in the inauguration of Britain’s “first permanent military base in the Middle East” since 1971.
According to news reports, the total cost of the new facility stands at more than 37 million British pounds (roughly $46 million), of which Bahrain has paid 30 million pounds.
In late 2014, Britain’s Foreign Office announced that an agreement signed between Manama and London would allow the latter to establish a military base in Bahrain.
Additional reporting by Inews
[Photo:Prince of Wales Prince Charles with Bahrain King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa in Manama to open British miltary base on 8 November, 2016. Photographer: Pool/BNA/AA]