Khaberni - The Israeli newspaper "Maariv" revealed advanced steps taken by Egypt and Saudi Arabia to form a new military and security alliance that includes Somalia to confront Israel.
The newspaper reported that Bloomberg indicated that the Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud will soon visit Riyadh to finalize the details of a trilateral agreement focused on enhancing security in the Red Sea and expanding military cooperation among the three countries.
In a related context, "Maariv" indicated that Egypt is strengthening its relationship with Riyadh where a senior source in the Egyptian presidency told the Middle East Eye newspaper that Cairo recently supplied Saudi Arabia with accurate intelligence.
The newspaper added that a senior Egyptian diplomat also revealed that Egypt had proposed in September last year the establishment of a regional defense force within the framework of the 1950 Treaty of Defense and Economic Cooperation, aimed at forming a quick response alliance to external threats — notably Israel.
However, the idea faced strong opposition from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, which rejected any security structure that would exclude their influence or weaken their current alliances.
"Maariv" pointed out that these movements are taking place parallel to Turkish efforts to join a security agreement between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed last September.
It mentioned that Ankara seeks to present it not as a "NATO-like alliance" but as a flexible mechanism for security cooperation that may include Pakistan and Saudi Arabia in the future, indicating that Turkey is also working on improving its relations with Egypt in the coming year.
The newspaper quoted security expert Dr. Andreas Krieg from King's College in London, saying that the regional system excludes other Arab countries such as the Gulf states and Turkey.
"Maariv" concluded by noting that the increasing military and security alignments between Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Somalia indicate a growing trend towards forming a unified Arab defense force, as a direct response to Israeli influence.
