Bahrain Names GCC Chief Country's New Foreign Minister

GCC chief Abdullatif al-Zayani. (AFP)
GCC chief Abdullatif al-Zayani. (AFP)
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Bahrain Names GCC Chief Country's New Foreign Minister

GCC chief Abdullatif al-Zayani. (AFP)
GCC chief Abdullatif al-Zayani. (AFP)

Bahrain has appointed the head of the Gulf Cooperation Council as the country’s next foreign minister, state media reported Thursday.

The Bahrain News Agency reported that Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa named Abdullatif al-Zayani as the foreign minister.

Local media reported al-Zayani will assume the post when his term as secretary general of the GCC ends on March 31.

He will be replacing Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, who’s been Bahrain’s foreign minister since 2005.

Sheikh Khalid, who confirmed the news on Twitter and congratulated al-Zayani, will serve as diplomatic adviser to the king.



Russia’s Putin Discusses US-Iran Nuclear Talks with Sultan of Oman

Sultan of Oman Haitham bin Tariq al-Said (L) and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands during a signing ceremony following their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 22 April 2025. (EPA/Kristina Kormilitsyna / Sputnik / Kremlin)
Sultan of Oman Haitham bin Tariq al-Said (L) and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands during a signing ceremony following their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 22 April 2025. (EPA/Kristina Kormilitsyna / Sputnik / Kremlin)
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Russia’s Putin Discusses US-Iran Nuclear Talks with Sultan of Oman

Sultan of Oman Haitham bin Tariq al-Said (L) and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands during a signing ceremony following their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 22 April 2025. (EPA/Kristina Kormilitsyna / Sputnik / Kremlin)
Sultan of Oman Haitham bin Tariq al-Said (L) and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands during a signing ceremony following their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 22 April 2025. (EPA/Kristina Kormilitsyna / Sputnik / Kremlin)

Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed Iran's nuclear program on Tuesday with the visiting leader of Oman, Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said, a Kremlin official was quoted as saying.

Oman has been mediating between Iran and the United States as President Donald Trump seeks an agreement that would curb Iran's nuclear program, which Washington believes is aimed at developing a nuclear weapon.

"We discussed the progress of negotiations between Iranian and American representatives," Interfax quoted Kremlin foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov as saying.

"We will see what the result will be. We maintain close contact with our Iranian colleagues. Where we can, we help."

Trump has threatened to bomb Iran unless a deal is reached; Iran denies seeking atomic weapons. Russia signed a strategic partnership treaty with Iran in January and is also trying to improve relations with the Trump administration.

Moscow has a role in nuclear talks with Iran as a signatory to a previous nuclear deal that Trump abandoned during his first term in 2018. Russia has said any US military action against Iran would be illegal.

In televised comments, Putin was shown telling the sultan that Russian energy companies were interested in developing relations with Oman.

It was the second time in less than a week that Putin has met face-to-face with a Middle Eastern leader, following a visit by the emir of Qatar on April 17. Iran's foreign minister visited last week.