Lieutenant General Theyab bin Saqr Al Nuaimi, Chief of Staff of the Bahrain Defence Force (BDF), chaired on Friday the 23rd Military Committee meeting of Chiefs of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Gulf Cooperation Council member states.

The meeting was attended by Lieutenant General Issa Saif bin Ablan Al Mazrouei, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the United Arab Emirates (UAE); General Fayyadh bin Hamed Al Ruwaili, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Vice Admiral Abdullah bin Khamis Al Raisi, Chief of Staff of the Sultan’s Armed Forces of the Sultanate of Oman; Lieutenant General (Pilot) Jassim bin Mohammed Al Mannai, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the State of Qatar; Lieutenant General Khaled Daraj Al Shuraian, Chief of the General Staff of the Kuwait Army.

Major General Salman Ibrahim Al Fadhala, Assistant Secretary General for Military Affairs at the GCC Secretariat General and Major General Abdulaziz bin Ahmed Al Balawi, Commander of the Unified Military Command of the GCC, also attended the meeting, Bahrain News Agency (BNA) reported. 

Lt. General Al Nuaimi said that the Kingdom of Bahrain, under the leadership of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, consistently emphasises the need to strengthen joint defence systems, enhance defence integration and support joint military development among the GCC states.

He extended the greetings of Field Marshal Shaikh Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, Commander-in-Chief of the Bahrain Defence Force (BDF), and Lieutenant General Abdullah bin Hassan Al Nuaimi, Minister of Defence Affairs, along with their wishes for the meeting’s success.

The Chief of Staff said that the current situation and the unprecedented acts of aggression required full solidarity, close coordination and joint cooperation to address threats to the security and stability of the GCC states.

He concluded his address by expressing his wishes for the meeting’s success and for the achievement of the aspirations of the GCC states, their leaders and peoples, in support of lasting security, stability and prosperity.

The meeting discussed agenda items aimed at strengthening joint military cooperation and enhancing defence coordination among the Armed Forces of the GCC states.

In another development, Lieutenant General His Highness Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Bahrain’s National Security Advisor and Royal Guard Commander, met Friday with Vice Admiral Kurt Renshaw, Commander of US Naval Forces Central Command, the US Fifth Fleet, and the Combined Maritime Forces, on the sidelines of the 22nd IISS Manama Dialogue 2026.

Shaikh Khalid bin Ali bin Jaber Al Khalifa, Deputy National Security Advisor, attended the meeting.

Held on 30 October-01 November 2026, the 22nd IISS Manama Dialogues is a unique forum for ministers, policymakers and decision-makers to debate the Middle East’s most pressing foreign-policy, defence and security challenges.

HH Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad emphasised the longstanding historical and strategic relations between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the United States (US), as well as their continued development across various domains.  His Highness commended the level of cooperation and joint coordination between the two countries and their mutual commitment to strengthening their strategic partnership to serve shared interests.

The two sides discussed means of strengthening military and defence cooperation and exchanged views on issues of mutual interest and the latest regional and international developments.

They also emphasised the importance of strengthening regional and international security and stability, ensuring the security of vital waterways, and safeguarding freedom of navigation to support regional and global development and prosperity.