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Jeddah Summit...Regional Coordination to Face Challenges

File photo of the meeting of foreign ministers of the countries bordering the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden (Asharq Al-Awsat)
File photo of the meeting of foreign ministers of the countries bordering the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Jeddah Summit...Regional Coordination to Face Challenges

File photo of the meeting of foreign ministers of the countries bordering the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden (Asharq Al-Awsat)
File photo of the meeting of foreign ministers of the countries bordering the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Council of Arab and African States bordering the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden will hold its first summit in Jeddah on Thursday, to discuss means to enhance the security of navigation and global trade.

The council, which was established in early 2020, seeks to expand political and economic cooperation and unify efforts to enhance navigation security and protect waterways and vital straits in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

Political researcher Abdo Salem said that the council would set practical mechanisms to merge the security systems of the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden with the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb, with the aim to curb the Iranian influence and other threats that lie in the Arabian Sea basin.

For his part, researcher in strategic and military studies Dr. Muhammad Al-Harbi said that the Jeddah summit would be held at an important time, in view of the accelerating events at the political, economic and military levels.

He explained that world powers were competing to draw a modern geopolitical map, in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Russian-Ukrainian war and its repercussions on energy, oil, and supply chains, in addition to the escalating Cold War between the United States and China.

Al-Harbi added that Saudi Arabia would assume an important role within the council, as a key political, economic, military and religious center, “embodying the concept of diversity and strategic balance, promoting security, stability, prosperity and comprehensive sustainable development in all fields, and confronting the various regional and international threats and challenges.”

“In this regard, it has become necessary to develop and activate an effective, advanced, realistic and applicable strategic vision, to guarantee the security of the Arabian Gulf and Red Sea regions in the face of various international and regional threats and challenges.”

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz had invited the leaders of the GCC countries to participate in the work and discussions of the one-day summit, which is held in the city of Jeddah on the Red Sea coast.

The summit agenda addresses a range of topics, topped by the situation in Yemen and the Horn of Africa, the security of water navigation and international trade routes, and their economic, commercial and investment importance to the global economy.

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French Ambassador to Saudi Arabia to Asharq Al-Awsat: Military Option Ineffective in Israel-Iran Conflict 

French Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Patrick Maisonnave. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
French Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Patrick Maisonnave. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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French Ambassador to Saudi Arabia to Asharq Al-Awsat: Military Option Ineffective in Israel-Iran Conflict 

French Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Patrick Maisonnave. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
French Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Patrick Maisonnave. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

French Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Patrick Maisonnave said Paris believes that military intervention will not resolve the “problem” over Iran’s nuclear program.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, he said such a solution was “ineffective” because it cannot completely eliminate Iran’s nuclear knowledge or ensure the complete destruction of all of its nuclear facilities.

Moreover, he warned against attempts to change the Iranian regime from the outside, saying it may have dire consequences, such as the collapse of the state, civil war, instability, regional conflicts, migration crises and raise terrorism threat levels.

This instability may also impact the security of the Gulf region and extend to Europe as well, he warned.

Damage to Iran’s nuclear sites may lead to dangerous radiation in the region that may spread to other regions, including Gulf waters, he went on to say.

Furthermore, military intervention will pose major dangers to regional stability, the security of France’s partners and allies in the region, and the Hormuz Strait. It may lead to attacks on American military bases and energy infrastructure, warned Maisonnave.

A diplomatic solution is the best way forward, he stressed, explaining that it will lead to a viable and permanent solution that enjoys international backing. This solution must tackle technical issues, such as enrichment levels. It also averts the grave consequences of military escalation.

A diplomatic solution must ensure that International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors are allowed to tour nuclear facilities at any time and without prior notice, he added.

This is the path that France chose in the past and that it believes is the best way to reach a permanent and peaceful solution, he stressed.

At the same time, the ambassador acknowledged that the Iranian nuclear program was a dangerous threat to French and European security interests, as well as to countries of the Gulf given its potential to destabilize the region and the “security of our allies”.

This concern deepened after IAEA inspectors were for years unable to ensure the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program, he remarked.

France and European countries are very concerned that the program was not designed with purely civilian purposes, Maisonnave said.