The Bahrain Center for Strategic, International and Energy Studies (Derasat), headed by Dr. Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, signed a cooperation agreement on Sunday with the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, headed by Amb. Dore Gold.

Amb. Dore Gold: When I left my first main diplomatic assignment as Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, I was told that the main goal that I will have to try to achieve was winning the war of ideas. That’s the struggle we’re waging. Our cooperation can become a critical factor in winning that war, and that’s what we have to try and do.

The Iranians did not get into such a powerful position without waging this intellectual war in the universities, on television, and around the world. So when people of similar sentiments in the Middle East work together and expose what the Iranians are doing across our region and suggest a different path, we can actually win that war of ideas, and that’s what I hope we do.

It’s not only going to be a military engagement, it’s a struggle of how people are thinking. That’s where think tanks are pivotal in preserving peace and security. So, Sheikh Abdulla, that’s one thing I feel very much in common with you and I hope no matter which hat we’re wearing, we will wage this struggle successfully.