Foreign Minister meets diplomats

Manama, June.21 (BNA): The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, has affirmed that the regulations recently taken by the Kingdom of Bahrain were aimed to maintain the country's security, protect its citizens and residents and continue with the process of progress and development in the country in light of the steady and strong reform project of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. He added that this has been taking place with the support of all the people of Bahrain who insist to participate in the continued process of democratic development to promote security and stability in the kingdom to deter any violation by anyone in order to preserve rights and freedoms and consolidate the rule of law and institutions. The Minister ascribed during the meeting with the heads of diplomatic missions accredited to the Kingdom the recent decision to the country's keenness on protecting the security of the homeland and the gains of its people and to prevent the country from plunging into chaos as it has happened to some countries in the region. All procedures, he noted, were implemented according to the law and after many violations had been committed by some sides who were found involved in many practices that pose a threat to the interests of the homeland and its security, and set the door open to violence, extremism and terrorism that risks to considerably damage the values of democracy and human rights, which any state that works for the benefit of its citizens and seeks to insure a secure and prosperous future for them cannot tolerate. He pointed that the judiciary and the rule of law are the main references that people can refer to restore the rights of all sides, be they individuals, societies or states, and are the right mechanisms to correct the paths that should be corrected, not to be against a particular person or party, but to uphold the security of the homeland which is considered a red line that none could approach. The Minister valued the positions of the brotherly and friendly countries in support of all the procedures taken by the Kingdom to confront attempts to shake internal stability and civil peace, saying that such stances are a living proof on the integrity and inevitability of such measures and are reflective of a general agreement among the world countries in renunciation of violence and extremism of all sorts and the need to take preventive and punitive measures to rid the society of its hazards. The Minister also called on all the states and international organizations to rely solely on reliable and well-sourced information to take appropriate positions in their issued statements, to ensure non-interference in Bahrain's internal affairs and respect laws and the provisions of the independent and fair Bahraini judiciary.