Interior minister highlights Bahrain's successful elections

Interior Minister Lieutenant-General Shaikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa has led the Kingdom's delegation to the 33rd Session of GCC Interior Ministers, held here today.
The Interior Minister delivered the following speech:
I am glad to welcome you all to the Thirty-Third Session of Their Highnesses and Excellencies GCC Interior Ministers and wish you the best success for the meeting. I would also like to express my thanks and appreciation to brother His Excellency Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Shaikh Mohammed Al Khalid Al Hamad Al Subah, and all staff of the Ministry and the General Secretariat for the organization and preparation of this session.
Your Highnesses and Excellencies, we meet today after having committed to the Al Riyadh Agreement in which we agreed to act in a unified manner to strengthen our relationships and to cooperate in new ways. Our bond and cooperation must give us the ability to overcome any challenge or situation that develops. Our thanks are extended to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin AbdulAziz Al Saud for his successful efforts to unify member states, and His Highness Kuwaiti Amir Shaikh Subah Ahmed Al Jaber Al Subah Head of the current Gulf summit for his dedication toward the development of the Gulf Cooperation Council and the achievement of its goals.
What makes me very proud is that the Kingdom of Bahrain, under the leadership of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, has always cooperated with other Gulf countries. This is as a result of the clear vision of HM who understands the necessity of solidarity between brothers to protect our vital interests and to overcome threats. The success of the Riyadh meeting and the resulting achievements reinforced this bond between Gulf countries. The strong ties between us have been handed down from grandfathers to fathers to sons. The agreement represents an official unified stance against threats surrounding the Gulf region and indeed all Arab countries.
Brothers, Bahrain achieved on November 22, a democratic milestone with the significant success of our Parliamentary and Municipal election. All those who participated in the voting process represented a national spirit, which ignored sectarian boundaries. The high participation rate reflected this sense of nationalism in all segments of the Bahraini community. Citizens showed they are willing to work together and cooperate toward the development of Bahrain by voting for a parliament that carries out its legislative and supervisory tasks in a responsible manner and pioneers steps that strengthen the Bahrain’s future under the leadership of HM the King.
Your Highnesses and Excellencies,
The region is blessed with a stability and prosperity that should be protected in order to safeguard our vital interests, especially from those crisis around us. The region is a target for terrorist organizations that exploits sectarianism and conflict and encourages armed violence that attracts individuals from all over the world, including from our own countries. These groups promote extremism and brainwash the minds of youth. To overcome such challenges we need to continue working to improve our coordination, information exchange networks and cooperation between the concerned authorities to limit these terrorist networks.
Brothers,
I’m confident that we are, by grace of God, have the strength, willingness and dedication to work together to achieve our goals. Our brave leaders have increased our strength in order that we may successfully face the challenges of the Gulf countries. We have the expertise to manage and direct our people to protect security and stability by taking initiatives to tackle all forms of threats, we also have our cooperative history that acts as a solid foundation to enhance our cooperation and coordination. I pray to God for our meeting to be blissful and to protect our nations from all harm to be forever secure and stable.
Peace be upon you and the mercy and blessings of God
After the session, His Excellency General Secretary of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Dr Abdullateef bin Rashid Al Zayani said that Their Highnesses and Excellencies expressed their gratitude for the efforts of Their Majesties and Highnesses GCC leaders to solve challenges and reinforce solidarity. He said that in addition to the supplementary Riyadh Agreement and positive results of the meeting called for by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in Riyadh on November 16, asserted that security authorities in the Gulf region will continue to protect security and stability of GCC countries.
HE Interior Minister was received upon his arrival in Kuwait by Kuwait Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Shaikh Mohammed Al Khalid Al Hamad Al Subah. He was accompanied by a delegation that included Bahrain Ambassador in Kuwait and Interior Ministry officials.