Gilad Erdan
Gilad ErdanFlash 90

Israel's ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, spoke by phone on Friday with Bahrain's ambassador to the UN, Jamal Fares Alrowaiei.

The ambassadors had a warm conversation, in which they congratulated each other on the establishment of diplomatic relations between Israel and Bahrain, and also agreed to meet to discuss cooperation in the UN on issues of innovation and economic development for the benefit of the two countries.

"Expanding the circle of peace in the Middle East can lead to a change at the UN as well. We are entering a new era in which we can publicly work together on security issues and the economic prosperity of Israel and the Arab countries. Together, we will face the challenges that threaten stability in the Middle East," said Erdan.

The White House announced earlier on Friday that US President Donald Trump, King Hamad bin Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa of Bahrain, and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu agreed to the establishment of full diplomatic relations between Israel and the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Bahrain thus becomes the second Gulf state to normalize ties with Israel, after the UAE and Israel announced they were normalizing relations on August 13.

The agreement will be signed next week in Washington alongside the official signing of the Israel-UAE deal.

(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)