The Chief-of-Staff of the Bahrain Defense Force (BDF), Lieutenant General Dhiyab bin Saqr Al-Nuaimi, received in Manama Friday Saudi Arabia’s Chief of the General Staff, General Fayyad bin Hamid Al-Ruwaili (photo), upon arrival at the Bahrain International Airport to participate in the 16th IISS Manama Dialogue.

The Chief-of-Staff also received on Friday the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of Jordan, Major General Yousef Ahmed Al Hunaiti, upon his arrival at the Bahrain International Airport to participate in the 16th IISS Manama Dialogue.

The Chief-of-Staff welcomed both guests and wished them a happy stay in the Kingdom.

For his part, Bahrain’s Minister of Defense, Lieutenant General Abdullah bin Hassan Al Nuaimi, also attended the inaugural session of the 16th edition of the Manama Dialogue forum which started Friday at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.

The three-day forum, themed “Competing for Influence in the Middle East”, casted light mainly on the security and foreign policy as well as challenges facing the Middle East, Bahrain News Agency (BNA) reported.

Earlier, Bahrain’s National Guard Staff Director Major General Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Saud Al Khalifa received Thursday Major General Zahid Mahmood, Director General of Foreign Military Cooperation of the Pakistani Army and Chairman of the Bahrain-Pakistan Committee.

The Guard Staff Director conveyed National Guard President General His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa’s greetings, lauding the advanced cooperation achieved by the National Guard and the Pakistani Armed Forces.

Sheikh Abdulaziz praised the deeply rooted relations, their development and growth they have reached in various fields, especially in military cooperation field.

Issues of mutual interest were discussed in the meeting.