Saudi commander says security of international waterways collective responsibility

Rear Admiral Abdullah bin Salem al-Shehri, commander of the Multinational Maritime Defence Coalition (MMDC), has said that protection of international waterways is an international responsibility, and warned that “any threat to international maritime security will be deterred”. Al Shehri was addressing the press after the coalition’s fourth planning meeting concluded in Jeddah on Friday. The MMDC is a 14-country military alliance formed in July to ensure global waterways around the Arabian Peninsula, including the Gulf of Aden, the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, and the Red Sea, remain open to international traffic. The meeting in Jeddah was part of the coalition’s "ongoing transition from the founding stage to the actual operational stage, having reached Initial operational capability," the ministry said in a statement on X. The meeting was attended by representatives of "41 brotherly and friendly countries," and EU representatives also took part.