Visit of the Honourable Noël A. Kinsella, Speaker of the Senate, and a Parliamentary Delegation, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Turkey

From January 13 to 24, 2011, the Honourable Noël A. Kinsella, Speaker of the Senate, led an official parliamentary delegation on a visit to Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. The delegation was composed of the Honourable Senators James S. Cowan, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, Donald H. Oliver, Speaker Pro Tempore of the Senate, Marie-Paule Poulin, Linda Frum, as well as Dr. Gary O’Brien, Clerk of the Senate.

In Bahrain, the delegation met with:

• His Majesty Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, King of the Kingdom of Bahrain;
• His Excellency Ali Bin Saleh Al-Saleh, Chairman of the Shura Council;
• His Excellency Khalifa Bin Ahmed Al-Dhahrani, Chairman of the Council of Representatives;
• Mr. Jamal Mohammed Fakhro, First Deputy Chairman of Shura Council;
• Vice Admiral Mark I. Fox, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command;
• Rear Admiral Margaret DeLuca Klein, Commander, Expeditionary Strike Group Five, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command;
• Commander E. Jones, Commanding Officer, USS Ponce;
• Commander Paul McNeil , Canadian Senior National Representative, Canadian Forces;
• Lieutenant Commander Anthony Crabb, HMS Grimsby; and
• Lieutenant Commander Adam Northover, HMS Chiddingfold.

During the visit, the delegation had an opportunity to visit the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command located in Bahrain. It also toured the USS Ponce, HMS Grimsby and HMS Chiddingfold.

In Saudi Arabia, the delegation met with:

• His Royal Highness Prince Salman Bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Riyadh Province;
• His Royal Highness Prince Saud Al-Faisal, Minister of Foreign Affairs;
• His Royal Highness Prince Sultan Bin Salman bin Abdul Aziz, President of the General Commission for Tourism and Antiquities;
• His Excellency Abdullah Mohammed Bin Ibrahim Al-Sheikh, Chairman of the Majlis Al-Shura;
• His Excellency Jubarah Bin Eid AlSuraisr Minister of Transport;
• His Excellency Fahd Bin Abdul Rahman Balghaneim, Minister of Agriculture;
• His Excellency Abdulaziz Al-Tuwaijri, President of the Saudi Ports Authority;
• Mr. Bandar Bin Mohammed Al-Aiban, Chairman of the Saudi Human Rights Commission; and
• Mr. Usamah M. Al-Kurdi, Chairman of the Canada-Saudi Parliamentary Friendship Committee.

The delegates had an opportunity to visit the King Abdulaziz Port and meet with officials from the port authority.

In Turkey, the delegation met with:

• His Excellency Abdullah Gül, President of the Republic of Turkey;
• His Excellency Mehmet Ali Şahin, President of the Turkish Grand National Assembly;
• His Excellency Mehmet Aydin, Minister of State;
• His Excellency Mehmet Görmez, President of Religious Affairs;
• His All Holiness Bartholomew, Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome, and Ecumenical Patriarch;
• Mr. Sadik Yakut, Vice-Speaker of the Turkish Grand National Assembly;
• Mr. Zafer Üskül, Chairman of Human Rights Investigation Committee, Turkish Grand National Assembly;
• Mrs. Fazilet Dağci Çiğlik, Chairman of the Turkish Group to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, Turkish Grand National Assembly;
• Mr. Mehmet Ceylan, Vice-Chairman of Foreign Affairs Committee, Turkish Grand National Assembly; and
• Mr. Hüseyin Ertan, Assistant Secretary General Foreign Affairs, Turkish Chamber of Shipping.

The delegation had an opportunity to visit and lay a wreath at the Atarürk Mausoleum, as well as visit the Turkish Chamber of Shipping.

The objectives of the visit were to:

• enhance relations between Canada and Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Turkey;
• encourage ongoing parliamentary dialogue by further promoting parliamentary exchanges;
• highlight the range of Canada’s interests in the region;
• discuss foreign policies with respect to issues of international and mutual interest;
• promote educational exchanges;
• promote research sharing in the area of agriculture;
• promote collaboration between container shipping ports; and
• pursue good relations in all fields of contact.