Bahrain

Bahrain has never provided any type of contributions to UN peacekeeping operations. The reasons why Bahrain does not contribute are related to its foreign policy, which is focused mostly on the region and in the developing of ties with the USA and the UK. There is no sign about the possibility of Bahrain’s troop contributions in the near future. Peacekeeping is also not a priority (perhaps not even in the agenda) of the ruling Al-Khalifa clan.

Initial variables of the data collection process:

UN/UN peacekeeping policy reform
No record.

Perception of peacekeeping
No record.

Domestic political environment
The ruling Al Khalifa clan still dominates the executive (EIU 2006e, 11). Politically sensitive ministries, including the interior, defence and foreign affairs portfolios, remain in the family’s hands (Ibid.).

A national guard, similar to that in Saudi Arabia, was established in 1997 to reinforce the authority of the ruling family and to augment the police and the army. A reshuffle in September 2005 consolidated the royal family’s hold over the cabinet, with members of the Al Khalifa family currently making up half of all cabinet posts. Opposition to the current regime can be traced back to the mid-1970s, although its form has changed markedly since then. Unrest on the island has often been presented as a sectarian conflict between the majority Shia population and the ruling Sunni minority. (Ibid.)

Tensions between the government and opposition MPs and activists will continue (EIU 2006bb, 1).

Domestic economic environment
Whereas other Gulf States have sufficient oil revenue to enable their citizens to enter business or public service, Bahrain’s limited oil and gas reserves have made it the only Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) state with an indigenous working class (EIU 2006e, 21). A study by a US management consultancy, McKinsey, which recommends significant changes to labor market laws, put unemployment in Bahrain at 13-16% in 2002 and forecast that some 100,000 Bahrainis will enter the job market over the next decade, a trend that could see unemployment rising to 33% by 2012 at current rates of recruitment (unemployment is currently estimated at up to 20%) (Ibid., quoting McKinsey 2006). Due this situation, it is possible but not likely, politically speaking.

Military affairs
The IISS states that Bahrain’s active armed forces totaled 11,200 in 2005, of which 8,500 were in the army, 1,200 in the navy and 1,500 in the air force (EIU 2006e, quoting IISS 2006).

The military was supplemented by 10,160 paramilitary personnel, of whom 9,000 were in the police, 260 in the coastguard and the remainder in the national guard. The army possessed 180 M-60A3 main battle tanks and around 235 armored personnel carriers; the air force had 33 combat aircraft and almost 100 helicopters; and the navy had 15 ships, including one frigate donated by the US. (Ibid.)

Foreign policy
Since independence in 1971, one of the most important objectives of Bahrain's foreign policy has been to contain perceived threats to the country's security (FRDLC 2006, par. 1).

As the smallest state in the region, Bahrain feels vulnerable to political influences emanating from more powerful neighbors, in particular Iran and Iraq, and it regards close ties to Saudi Arabia and other Arab monarchial regimes as a means of countering these potentially harmful influences. Since 1981 Bahrain's most important foreign relations have been with its GCC allies, although problems with individual members of the GCC have developed. The most serious problems have been with Qatar. Bahrain and Qatar have unresolved territorial disputes stemming from the nineteenth century when the Al Thani of Qatar foreswore allegiance to the Al Khalifa and established a separate emirate. In the twentieth century, the two states have contested sovereignty over Hawar and the adjacent islands, the closest of which is fewer than two kilometers from Qatar's west coast. (Ibid., par. 2)

Outside the Persian Gulf region, Bahrain has cordial relations with other countries (Ibid., par. 3). The two non-Arab countries with which it maintains the closest relations are Britain and the United States (Ibid.). After the Persian Gulf War, Bahrain held negotiations with Washington that culminated in 1992 in the signing of a defence cooperation agreement (Ibid.).

Economic and political ties with the UK have remained close, despite the UK’s rejection of repeated demands by Bahrain in the mid-1990s to restrict the opposition’s activities in London (EIU 2006e, 14). Under King Hamad, relations have improved (Ibid.).

Bahrain is a member of several international organizations, including the UN, the IMF, and the WHO (FRDLC 2006, par. 4). It also belongs to several regional organizations, the most important of which is the League of Arab States, as well as the Organization of the Islamic Conference (Ibid.).

Additional variables found after the preliminary analysis:

Climate changes
No record.

Independent negotiations taken by DPKO to seek troops
No record.

Independent negotiations taken by contributor countries to engage non-contributor countries
No record.

Meetings organized by other international organizations to engage in dialogue about peacekeeping
No record.