MANAMA, Bahrain -- Batelco, Bahrain's national telecommunications operator, today announced a massive multi-million dollar investment in the country's communications infrastructure with the signing of an historic agreement that provides a landing station for FLAG Telecom's FALCON cable system in Bahrain. The agreement will mean that the country's global connections are vastly improved via submarine links stretching to Egypt in the west and to Hong Kong in the East.

In addition, Batelco has signed a capacity agreement, purchasing international connectivity on the cable system to allow it to connect directly to any point on the FLAG global network. The capacity purchase will provide a four-fold increase in resilient international circuits into and out of Bahrain and - for the first time - offer loop protection within the Gulf region.

Batelco's Chairman Rasheed Al-Maraj, said: "This enormous investment represents a tremendous strategic step by Batelco that will allow The Kingdom of Bahrain to benefit from direct connectivity with the world's key metropolitan centres for the first time ever.

"Bahrain is a high-growth economy and Bateclo is determined to provide the infrastructure needed to support and drive development for our region. FLAG is a leading global provider of international connectivity and we look forward to continuing our long standing relationship with them by bringing this gift of global international access to the Kingdom of Bahrain."

Bahrain Telecommunications Co. (Batelco)