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Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
September 13, 2023
Today, the United States and the Kingdom of Bahrain signed the Comprehensive Security Integration and Prosperity Agreement. This agreement will enhance cooperation across a wide range of areas, from defense and security to emerging technology, trade, and investment. It marks the latest development in the United States’ close partnership with Bahrain and enduring commitment to the region in support of peace.
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COMPREHENSIVE SECURITY INTEGRATION AND PROSPERITY AGREEMENT
Preamble
The Parties to this Agreement:
Underscoring the need to build a fully integrated regional security architecture in the Middle East to deter and respond to external threats;
Recognizing that this Agreement supports the goals of, but is distinct from, the Abraham Accords Declaration signed on September 15, 2020, the Negev Forum that was first convened in March 2022, and other recent regional integration efforts, which have established new regional ties and deepened the extent of cooperation among countries in the Middle East;
Affirming the Parties’ desire to expand their defense and security cooperation; trade and investment ties; and collaboration in science and technology;
Building on the decades-long U.S. security partnership with Bahrain’s military forces; and,
Looking to foster broader regional security integration, bolster mutual deterrence against external threats, and expand cooperation in the fields of commerce, science, and technology with like-minded states in the Middle East region, and with the expectation of welcoming in the future additional parties to this Agreement in furtherance of those objectives;
Have agreed to the following:
Article I: Principles of Cooperation
This Agreement is based on the following principles and beliefs shared by the Parties:
Article II: Defense and Security Cooperation
The Parties’ cooperation in the areas of defense and security is based on their shared commitment to stability and peace in the Middle East region.
It is the policy of the Parties to work together to help deter and confront any external aggression against the territorial integrity of any of the Parties.
Any external aggression or threat of external aggression against the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of any of the Parties shall be a matter of grave concern to the other Parties. In the event of external aggression or the threat of external aggression against one Party, the Parties shall, in accordance with their respective constitutions and laws, immediately meet at the most senior levels to determine additional defense needs and to develop and implement appropriate defense and deterrent responses as decided upon by the Parties, including in the economic, military, and/or political realms. The Parties stand ready to immediately share available and appropriate information and intelligence in response to such an event.
In order to further strengthen the security of the Parties and stability in the Middle East, and to deter threats against them, the Parties agree:
4. To coordinate on a regular basis – and no less than biannually – on military and defense matters. This coordination shall include a particular focus on combined efforts to deter and confront threats of external aggression against one or more of the Parties.
5. The Parties shall also hold a Defense Working Group convened and hosted annually by one of the Parties. The Defense Working Group shall be the primary forum for reviewing progress on implementation of this Article.
Each Party reaffirms its commitments to compliance with its obligations under international law, including the law of armed conflict.
Article III: Economic, Commercial, and Trade Cooperation
Recalling the trade and investment agreements in place between the Parties, the Parties agree to cooperate to:
Article IV: Science, Technology, and Network Security
Recognizing that the long-term stability and prosperity of the Middle East region can be advanced by the growth in scientific and technological cooperation among the Parties, including through development and deployment of trusted technologies that further the national security of the Parties, the Parties agree to cooperate to:
2. Subject to agreement among the Parties, develop and share relevant standards, guidelines and best practices with a view to each Party securing its networks, communications systems, software, and hardware to prevent inappropriate access to sensitive information on a Party’s networks that could disrupt infrastructure or maliciously route data.
3. Develop and promote a more secure, resilient, diverse, competitive, transparent, and sustainable digital and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure supply chain, particularly in global telecommunications.
Article V: Disputes and Implementation
Article VI: Amendment
This Agreement may be amended through mutual written agreement of the Parties.
Article VII: Signature and Entry into Force
Article VIII: Additional Parties to this Agreement
Article IX: Withdrawal
Done at Washington, this 13th day of September, 2023 in two originals in the English and Arabic languages. In the event of divergence or ambiguity between the two language texts, the English shall prevail.
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