Bahrain’s Ambassador to the UK Shaikh Fawaz bin Mohammed Al Khalifa said that the official talks on the Free Trade Agreement with the United Kingdom would contribute to achieving economic benefits for both the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and the UK.
“There is no doubt that the trade exchange between Bahrain and the United Kingdom is constantly increasing,” he said.
“Since we have started the official negotiations on the free trade agreement, we expect the volume of trade exchange to rise immediately after its signing, which will hopefully be in the summer of 2023,” he told Bahrain News Agency (BNA).
“We expect the rate of trade exchange between the United Kingdom and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries to increase in the first year by 15% and by 30% in the following year. We are on the verge of a new era of openness in the trade exchange, and we hope that commercial and industrial institutions in Bahrain will contribute their views and ideas to ensure trade benefits for all.”
The ambassador said that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak praised during the Sharm el-Sheikh Climate Summit the historic British relations with the GCC countries and the shared interest in the free trade agreement.
Shaikh Fawaz said that several UK companies are participating in the Bahrain International Air Show (BIAS 2022) and that a UK parliament delegation is in Bahrain to view the latest developments in the aviation industry and to promote companies operating in their regions.
There are many British civil and military companies seeking to work with companies in Bahrain and in the region as a whole and to conclude deals at BIAS 2022, he added.
Source: Bahrain News Agency