Saudi Arabia launches 14-nation maritime defence coalition for the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait

Summary

Saudi Arabia announced July 30 in Riyadh that 14 countries have committed to a new multinational maritime defence coalition to protect shipping in the Red Sea, the Bab El Mandeb Strait, and the Gulf of Aden. Saudi Arabia hosted the founding meeting in Riyadh and is seeking to expand the coalition to 43 member nations. The alliance is headquartered in Riyadh and explicitly targets the threat from Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, who resumed attacks on commercial vessels earlier in July, pushing oil prices toward US$90 per barrel. Pakistan is among the committed members. No formal treaty text was published, and the coalition's command structure was not detailed in public statements.

Why it matters

No multilateral naval structure has formally anchored on the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb chokepoint since the US-led Operation Prosperity Guardian in late 2023, which ultimately failed to stop Houthi strikes. A Saudi-headquartered coalition, if it reaches 43 members, would represent a broader regional ownership of the waterway than anything Prosperity Guardian achieved, and would signal Saudi Arabia is willing to take security lead in a corridor that carries roughly 12% of global trade. It also tests whether Gulf states can hold a coalition together without direct US command.

What to watch

• Which 29 additional nations Saudi Arabia recruits to reach the 43-nation target, and whether any major Asian shipping states (China, South Korea, Japan, India) join
• Operational details: rules of engagement, command structure, and whether the coalition escorts vessels or only monitors
• Houthi response and whether the coalition's formation deters or accelerates attacks in the coming weeks
• Pakistan's specific role, given its naval capacity and its parallel US-Iran mediation engagement