Bahrain's King Hamad met Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on a visit to Riyadh on Tuesday.
Prince Mohammed greeted the Bahraini ruler at King Khalid International Airport, the scene of recent Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia.
During talks between the two leaders, King Hamad praised Saudi Arabia's “benevolent efforts” in developing a “joint action system” for the Gulf, official media said. It came on the day that Gulf defence ministers approved setting up a new joint command centre in Kuwait.
King Hamad also lauded Saudi Arabia's “pivotal role in consolidating the foundations of security, peace, and stability” in the region.
Prince Mohammed said Saudi Arabia wanted to “enhance the close fraternal ties” between the two countries, the Saudi Press Agency said. They also discussed regional developments and “efforts to enhance security and stability”, amid a broad push by Middle East countries to prevent the Iran war from reigniting.
Visits to Saudi Arabia by foreign leaders were scaled back after Yemen's war with the Houthis reignited. A summit of EU and Gulf leaders was postponed, as was the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh.
In the worst Houthi attack, 12 people were killed and more than 300 injured in an attack on King Khalid airport in early October.
But Iraq's Prime Minister Ali Al Zaidi and Syria's President Ahmad Al Shara have both met Prince Mohammed in the past month. French President Emmanuel Macron was the first western leader to visit since fighting resumed.
Bahrain's cabinet on Monday condemned what it described as "continued terrorist attacks" by the Houthis on Saudi Arabia.
