Organised by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), the summit will bring together 23 government delegations led by more than 24 prime ministers, defence ministers, national security advisers, chiefs of intelligence and other senior officials from the Gulf region and the wider security community.
Convened annually, the Manama Dialogue brings together all elements of the national security establishments from the countries of the wider region — Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the UAE and Yemen — with the key external powers — Australia, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Pakistan, Russia, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United States.
The summit will formally open on December 12. The programme for December 13 will include three plenary sessions to be addressed by delegation leaders.
In the evening, Al Arabiya TV channel will host a television debate on The Future of Regional Security: Reflections from the Manama Dialogue.
The Dialogue will conclude on December 14 with three further plenary sessions — The Role of the International Community in Regional Security; Changing Regional Security Architecture; and Concluding Thoughts on Regional Security.
