Bahrain Government Bahrain joined other Arab states in condemning the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty in March 1979, and temporarily broke off diplomatic relations with Egypt. Some anxiety was caused by the revolution in Iran. In September 1979 Iranian Shi´ite elements urged Bahraini Shi´ites, who are in the majority and many of whom are of Iranian descent, to demonstrate against the Sunni Amir. Calm was soon restored but it was apparent that the new Iranian regime was interested in reviving the old Iranian policy of laying claim to Bahrain a policy which the Shah had not renounced until 1975. In March 1981 Bahrain was one of the six founder-members of the Co-operation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, which was established in order to co-ordinate defence strategy and to promote freer trading and co-operative economic protection among Gulf states. In 1986 the King Fahd Causeway between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia was opened, indicating Bahrain´s commitment to closer links with other Gulf states. In common with other Gulf states, Bahrain consistently expressed support for Iraq at the time of the Iran-Iraq war (1980-88). However, following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in August 1990, Bahrain firmly supported the implemen- tation of UN economic sanctions against Iraq and permitted the stationing of US troops and combat aircraft in Bahrain. British armed forces, participating in the multinational force for the defence of Saudi Arabia and the liberation of Kuwait, were also stationed in Bahrain in 1990-91. In June 1991 it was confirmed that Bahrain would remain a regional support base for the USA, and later in the year the two countries signed a defence co-operation agreement. In January 1994 Bahrain signed further accords of military co-operation with the USA and the United Kingdom. In March 1995 William Perry, the US Secretary of Defense, visited Bahrain and held talks with the Amir on Gulf security issues. In late 1995 Bahrain agreed to the temporary deployment on its territory of US fighter aircraft in order to deter any possible military threat from Iraq. During the early 1990s Bahrain allowed a tentative rapprochement with Iran. Relations were upgraded to ambassadorial level in late 1990, and the two countries signed an important protocol for industrial co-operation in early 1992.