ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Saudi Arabia hosted military officials from 43 countries and the European Union delegation on Thursday to discuss establishing a multinational defensive coalition aimed at protecting three key maritime trade routes amid growing security threats and the ongoing US-Iran war.
“The meeting was held to discuss the Kingdom's initiative to establish the Multinational Defensive Maritime Coalition,” Saudi Arabia's defense ministry said in a statement, noting that the coalition falls “within the framework of efforts aimed at enhancing maritime security, protecting international sea lanes, and countering threats targeting maritime navigation and global trade.”
The meeting comes amid escalating tensions in regional waters after Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militias recently announced a naval blockade on Saudi shipping in the Red Sea, claiming responsibility for targeting two Saudi oil tankers.
The Houthis said the embargo was a response to what they described as an "unjust and oppressive siege" imposed by Riyadh "on our ports and airports by land, sea, and air" over the past 12 years since the start of the Yemen war.
Saudi Arabia has firmly rejected the Houthi claims of a blockade on Yemen. The Saudi-led coalition backing Yemen's internationally recognized government also warned that the Houthi measures in the Red Sea amount to "maritime piracy" and would be met with “decisive force.”
Because the Houthis control much of Yemen's western coastline, the blockade primarily targets the Bab al-Mandab Strait, which connects the Gulf of Aden to the Red Sea.
The move is specifically aimed at disrupting Saudi Arabia's western maritime trade route, which transports crude oil via the East-West Pipeline to the kingdom's main Red Sea export terminal at Yanbu.
The route has become increasingly important for Riyadh after the virtual closure of the Strait of Hormuz earlier this year during the US-Iran war forced the kingdom to redirect much of its oil exports through the Red Sea.
"The Multinational Defensive Maritime Coalition represents an open international defense initiative that accommodates all countries sharing its goals and principles," the defense ministry stated, adding that "the security of international sea lanes is a collective responsibility requiring an effective and sustainable international partnership."
The proposed coalition will be headquartered in Saudi Arabia, which will serve as its founding and leading state. During Thursday's meeting, participants discussed the draft charter, organizational structure, and operational mechanisms to protect critical waterways, including the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the Red Sea, and the Gulf of Aden.
A total of 14 countries issued a joint statement supporting the initiative, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, and Jordan, according to the Saudi statement.
Other participating countries also backed the initiative and are completing domestic approval procedures before joining the joint statement, the ministry added.
US President Donald Trump has warned the Houthis that if they move forward with imposing a naval blockade in the Red Sea, his country will "have to take care of business.”
The Strait of Hormuz, through which about one-fifth of the world's oil supply passes, has faced maritime restrictions since the outbreak of the US-Israeli war on Iran in late February.
.jpeg&w=3840&q=75)
