Saudi Arabia Unveils Plans For Maritime Defence Coalition To Fight Houthis In Red Sea

Saudi Arabia revealed a plan to build an international maritime defence coalition, comprising allies and partners, to fight the Houthi Group in the Red Sea amidst the recent escalation.

The coalition would work to strengthen maritime security, protect freedom of navigation, international trade lanes, and maritime chokepoints in the region, especially the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden.

According to the Saudi Defence Ministry, representatives from 43 nations and the EU were part of the high-level meeting in which the coalition was the main agenda.

Saudi Arabia would serve as the founder and the leader of the multinational coalition and also the headquarters for all related activities.

14 countries, including Pakistan, Djibouti, Egypt, Turkiye and Sudan, have given a joint statement to support the coalition. Two Gulf nations, Oman and the UAE, have not backed the plan, per reports.

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis have blamed Saudi Arabia for working with Western forces, leading to the corruption and siege of their country that has been going on for 12 years.

The Houthis in mid july said that they would impose a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea.

They even targeted shipping in the Red Sea, after which Riyadh launched attacks on what it claimed were military sites of the Houthis in Yemen’s Port of Hodeidah, which were used for attacking ships in the region.

Houthis have threatened to close the crucial Bab al-Mandeb Strait as well, which has led to major concerns among all countries, suffering from the impact of the Hormuz closure by Iran, after the U.S and Israel attacked the Islamic Republic in February.

The Bab el-Mandeb Strait connects the ​southern Red ⁠Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. It is a maritime chokepoint which handles around 12% of global trade, including 1.36 million metric tons every day and 3 to 4 million barrels of oil per day.

This is not the first time that Houthis have threatened to attack ships in the Red Sea. In 2024, the EU launched a mission to protect vessels from the group after it disrupted operations in what they called an act in solidarity with the people of Palestine during the war in Gaza.