BAHRAIN

INTRODUCTION1. GEOGRAPHY2. GOVERNMENT AND POPULATION3. ECONOMY4. HISTORY5. INDEPENDENCE6. DOMESTIC POLITICS7. FOREIGN RELATIONS7.1.Relations with Iran7.2. Relations with Qatar7.3.Relations with the U.S.A7.4.Relations with Turkey

1.GEOGRAPHY• Bahrain is an archipelagoof 33 islands located off theeastern coast of Saudi Arabia . The four main islands are joined by causeways, and make up about 95% of the total land area.

2.GOVERNMENT AND POPULATION• Full name: Kingdom of Bahrain (Mamlakat al Bahrayn )• Area: 717 sq km (277 sq miles) • Capital: Manama • Population: 807,000 (UN, 2010) • Languages: Arabic is the official language; English is

widely spoken and is the main commercial language • Legal system: based on Islamic law and English

common law • Political parties and leaders: political parties

prohibited but politically oriented societies are allowed • Political pressure groups and leaders: Shia

activists; Sunni Islamist legislators and several small leftist and other groups are active

• Government: Monarchy with appointed upper and elected lower chambers of Parliament

• Head of State: His Majesty Shaikh Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa

• Crown Prince: His Highness Shaikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa

• Prime Minister: His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Al-Khalifa

• Ethnic groups: Bahraini 63%, Asian 19%, other Arab 10%, Iranian 8%.

• Religions: 98% Muslim (approximately Shi'a 70%, Sunni 30%), with small Christian, Jewish, Baha’i, and Hindu communities.

• Monetary unit: 1 Bahraini dinar = 1,000 fils

3.ECONOMY

• Natural resources: Oil, associated and non-associated natural gas, fish, pearls

• Major Industries: Aluminum, oil and gas, metal and ship building and repair, financial services and tourism

• Inflation: 3.5% • In Bahrain, petroleum production and processing

account for about 60% of export receipts, 60% of government revenues, and 30% of GDP.

• Financial and insurance services contributed 30% of GDP in 2006.

• The continuing development of the Bahrain Financial Harbour is a key element of the government’s strategy.

4. HISTORY

• The islands of Bahrain first stepped ontothe stage of history some 3000 years BC.• The civilization of Dilmun: the centre of one of the great trading empires of the ancient world.• It had been a linkage between Mesopotamia (Southern Iraq)and the Indus Valley(today's India and Pakistan)

• The years from 300B.C. to 300A.D:Bahrain was strongly influenced and often directly ruled by various Persian civilizations

• The 4th century : Alexander the Great arrived the island• The 7th century: Bahrain accepted Islam • Between 1522 and 1602 : the Portuguese occupied Bahrain • from 1602 to 1782 : Persian • dominance

• In 1782 : The present ruling family, the Khalifa, captured Bahrain.• In the 1830s the Al Khalifa signed the first of many treaties establishing Bahrain as a British Protectorate • Bahrain was the first Gulf country to discover petroleum in 1932.

5.THE INDEPENDENCE• In 1968 the British announced their intention

to withdraw military forces from the Gulf area • Iran’s claims over the islands in 1970• At first stance, projects to form the Federation

of Arab Emirates • Bahrain declared its independence on August

15, 1971

• Promulgation of the first constitution in 1973 - convening of an elective National Assembly

6 DOMESTIC POLITICS• In 1975 the sheikh suspended the constitution and

dissolved the national assembly The emir continued to set state policy Since 1994, Bahrain experienced sometimes severe civil disturbances from a Shi'ite-led resistance

King HAMAD bin Isa al-Khalifa, after coming to power in 1999, pushed economic and political reforms • Under the constitution amended 14 February 2002, the country is no longer an emirate, but a constitutional monarchy.

• The Parliament comprises two Houses - the Shura (Consultative, Lower House) and the Nuwab (Upper Council of Representatives)

• The country’s first municipal and parliamentary elections in decades were held in May and October 2002

the first time that female candidates were able to run for public office

7.BAHRAIN’S FOREIGN RELATIONS• Since achieving independence in 1971, Bahrain

has pursued a policy to contain perceived threats to the country's security

• a member of the United Nations and the Arab League (since 1971)

• The outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War in 1980 aroused security concerns

In 1981 it joined its five neighbors-Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, the U.A.E. and Qatar-to form the strategic Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

• strong relations with its largest financial backers, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the U.A.E

7.1.Relations with Iran• the Iranian Revolution of 1979 confronted the

government with new ideological challenges the discovery in 1981 of an Iran-sponsored coup plot in

Bahrain Iran’s ties to the country’s Shīʿite community, its

territorial claims to the island, and its displeasure with the American presence in Bahrain

• In August 2002, Hamad made the first state visit to Iran since the Islamic revolution in 1979.

Bahrain and Iran urged Iraq to implement all UN resolutions then pending, so that Iraq's territorial integrity and sovereignty could be honored

7.2. Relations with Qatar

• territorial dispute between Bahrain and Qatar over Hawar and the adjacent islands

The islands were controlled by Bahrain since the 1930s but were claimed by Qatar.

Resolution in 2001 of the dispute between Bahrain and Qatar over the potential oil- and gas-rich Hawar Islands improved their already warming relations.

7.3. Relations with the U.S.A• Bahrain's strategic partnership with the U.S.

has intensified since 1991 the country was used as a base for military

operations in the Gulf in 1992 the signing of a defense cooperation

agreement support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF)

and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF)

7.4. Relations with Turkey• Diplomatic relations between Turkey and Bahrain were

established in 1973 • The visit of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of

Foreign Affairs H.E. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Mobarak El-Halife on 5-8 August 2003 bears importance for being the first visit from Bahrain at such a high level

• Trade volume between Turkey and Bahrain was 78.1 million US Dollars in 2006

• Bilateral economic relations have strengthened in the recent period thanks to the increase in the number of high level visits

In 2007 the trade volume between Turkey and Bahrain was 186 million USD

REFERENCES

• http://geography.about.com/library/cia/blcbahrain.htm

• https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ba.html

• http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/country_profiles/790690.stm#facts

• http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/travel-advice-by-country/country-profile/?l=B

• http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107313.html • http://www.mfa.gov.tr/turkey_s-commercial-an

d-economic-relations-with-bahrain.en.mfa

• http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/72316/turkey-and-bahrain-support-each-other-in-political-sphere-president-gul.html

• http://www.historyofnations.net/asia/bahrain.html

ELİF AKÇAY 20615691