Interior minister meets US officials

Washington, Apr. 10(BNA): Interior Minister General Shaikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al- Khalifa held a series of meetings as part of his official visit to the United States. He met head of committees and members of the Congress; Chairman of Senate Homeland Security Committee, Senator Ron Johnson, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman, Senator Jim Risch, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Member, Senator Bob Menendez and member of House Foreign Affairs Committee and House Homeland Security Committee, Congressman Michael McCaul. The minister hailed the strategic relations between the two friendly countries and joint efforts to develop joint ties, along with opening new mutual cooperation horizons. They also reviewed security challenges, sources of terrorism in the region and mechanisms to deal with them, including the Iranian interference in the internal affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain through financing and supporting terrorist cells and supplying them with weapons and explosives. He underlined the sheltering of terrorists and the training of fugitives in camps of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, in addition to providing media coverage to for terrorist crimes. He highlighted steps taken by the Interior Ministry to modernise security authorities. The meetings focused also on security cooperation and coordination between Bahrain and the United States, as part of the strong ties and strategic partnership between the two friendly countries. Gen. Shaikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al- Khalifa met Secretary of US Treasury Department, Steven Mnuchin who welcomed the visit as part of the strong ties between the two countries. The meeting reviewed cooperation in fighting terrorism financing and money laundering training, along with the reinforcement of joint collaboration as part of the Terrorist Financing Targeting Center (TFTC) formed by both Saudi Arabia and the US and with the membership of Gulf Countries, through national committees to implemented the decisions of the Security Council concerning fighting terrorism and its financing. The minister was briefed about a field experience about the services of the Air Ambulance Services in the United States, through the fast and safe evacuation planes for patients and injured. The facilities also include dealing with patients if their cases require immediate interference. The meetings were attended by Bahrain Ambassador to Washington, Shaikh Abdullah bin Rashid Al-Khalifa and the MOI accompanying.