Senior Minister of State for Defence and Foreign Affairs Dr Mohamad Maliki Bin Osman visited Bahrain and attended the 14th Manama Dialogue from 26 to 28 October 2018. Organised by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, the annual dialogue is a key security forum for senior defence, security and foreign affairs officials from around the world to discuss security challenges in the Middle East and beyond.

While in Bahrain, Dr Maliki was hosted to dinner by King of Bahrain His Majesty King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa and lunch by Minister of Foreign Affairs Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmed Bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, where the heads of delegation discussed regional security developments. He also met with Prime Minister His Royal Highness Prince Khalifa Bin Salman Al Khalifa, Minister Shaikh Khalid and Minister of Defence Affairs Lieutenant-General Yousef Bin Ahmed Bin Hussain Al Jalahma. They affirmed the warm and friendly bilateral and defence relations between Singapore and Bahrain. Dr Maliki also expressed Singapore’s appreciation for Bahrain's support for the Singapore Armed Forces deployments in support of the multinational coalition to defeat the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, as well as to the Gulf of Aden under the ambit of Combined Task Force 151. 

On the sidelines of the Manama Dialogue, Dr Maliki also met with Saudi Arabia's Assistant Minister of Defence Mohammad Al Ayesh and Egypt's Assistant Minister of Defense Major-General Mohammed El Keshky.

Singapore has been attending the Manama Dialogue since its inception in 2004. The 14th Manama Dialogue was attended by more than 25 countries, including Australia, Egypt, France, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the UAE, the UK, and the US.