Manama, Bahrain, 6 November 2004 – Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto G. Romulo today met with Bahraini Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Shaik Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Khalifa and received the full support of Shaik Mohammed for the efforts of the Philippine government to bring peace and progress to the Southern Philippines.

“Shaik Mohammed is an old and good friend of the Philippines.  He has always supported our quest for peace and development in Mindanao and he has committed to continue helping us,” Secretary Romulo said.  Bahrain has provided development assistance to Mindanao and has supported the efforts of the Philippines to be an Observer in the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC).  “Shaik Mohammed has carried this commitment even further. Bahrain is willing to join the International Monitoring Team that will ensure that the ceasefire holds while peace talks are being held,” the Secretary added.

The two foreign ministers also discussed cooperation in multilateral fora.  “Shaik Mohammed shared his wisdom as a former member of the Security Council and said that Bahrain will support our efforts as a current member of the Security Council,” the Secretary said.

They also discussed coordination of their efforts on other multilateral issues, including the reform of the UN and supporting the initiatives in the United Nations on interfaith dialogue and dialogue among civilizations.  Cooperation in other fora, such as the Asian Consultative Dialogue, the Non-Aligned Movement and the OIC was also discussed.

On Iraq, both ministers agreed that efforts should continue to bring stability, security and tolerance to Iraq.  Like Bahraini Prime Minister Shaih Khalifa whom the Secretary met earlier, Shaik Mohammed told the Secretary that Bahrain will join in efforts to secure the safe and early release of Robert Tarongoy, a Filipino hostage in Iraq. END.