LONDON, Nov. 22 (UPI) — British Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Richard Ottaway said Friday ties to Saudi Arabia and Bahrain require a “sensitive and nuanced approach.”

“The U.K.’s relations with Saudi Arabia and Bahrain require a sensitive and nuanced approach, taking into account our long history of relations and shared interests, as well as the differences between our societies,” he said in a statement.

Ottaway’s committee reviewed British ties to the two Middle Eastern countries. On Bahrain, he said the Sunni-led monarchy’s “aggressive” response to a Shiite-led rebellion in 2011 tarnished Bahrain’s international reputation.

Ottaway said the British government should press Bahrain to reform “and if no greater progress is seen, it should designate Bahrain a country of concern in its next human rights report.”

Bahrain said it’s committed to reforms outlined by an independent panel of inquiry, which examined the government’s response to an uprising that left dozens of people dead.

On Saudi Arabia, Ottaway said the British government should recognize the kingdom for progress made in addressing women’s rights but also be mindful that reforms are starting from a “very low base.”

“The [British] government must be vigilant in monitoring progress in both states and be prepared to respond robustly where reforms stall or are reversed,” Ottaway said.