Last Sunday Britain started constructing its first permanent military base in the Middle East since 1971. The new Royal Navy base will be in located in the Port of Mina Salman in Bahrain.
The ceremony marking the start of construction was attended by British Foreign Secretary, Philip Hammond and Bahraini Foreign Minister, Sheikh Khalid Al-Khalifa.
The construction of the new military base forms part of an agreement that the two countries reached last year in order to improve their cooperation and to deal with security threats in the Middle East.
According to the British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon the new base in Bahrain, “will enable Britain to send more and larger ships to reinforce stability in the Gulf”, while the Bahraini Foreign Minister, Sheikh Khalid Al-Khalifa, said that the construction of the new base was expected to “strengthen the partnership between the two countries and enable the forces to carry out their duties effectively.”
The cost of the construction of the new base is going to be £15 million and it should be completed next year. Bahrain is already home to the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet.
Image Sourced: The Independent