Saudi Arabia's Maritime Coalition: The Rise of Regional Security Leadership |
Saudi Arabia’s Maritime Coalition: The Rise of Regional Security Leadership
Saudi Arabia’s new maritime defense alliance is not merely another naval coalition; it represents an attempt to replace fragmented crisis responses with an institutional regional maritime security framework led by Arab and regional powers rather than Western navies.
The Limits of the U.S.-Led Maritime Security Order
Since the 1991 Gulf War, the United States has served as the principal guarantor of maritime security in the Gulf region through its naval presence. It has led multinational efforts to ensure freedom of navigation, deter regional threats, safeguard the Strait of Hormuz, and protect the uninterrupted flow of global energy supplies and commercial shipping. However, its recent unnecessary attacks on Iran exposed the reality behind its security guarantees. President Trump’s war of choice with Iran demonstrates that all the US military and naval presence in the region was merely to protect Israeli interests in the region.
Annually, around 20 percent of global oil and LNG trade passes through the Strait of Hormuz. The Gulf Countries depend on imports of 80-90 percent of food. Saudi Arabia diverted its maritime trade to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a maritime trade route responsible for around 14 percent of global maritime trade. The blockade of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran, following the US-Israeli strikes, and the partial blockade of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait by........