Sarmad Infographic – 14 Countries Announce Formation of Defensive Maritime Alliance to Protect Navigation in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab - Sarmad
(WAM) – The founding states of the Multinational Maritime Defence Alliance issued a joint statement, the text of which follows:
The governments of the founding states of the Multinational Maritime Defence Alliance, meeting in the city of Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on July 30, 2026, reaffirming their firm commitment to the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, the provisions of international law, international treaties, and internationally recognized rules and customs.
Recognizing the growing challenges facing global maritime security and the imperative they impose to enhance collective maritime defence cooperation to protect freedom of navigation and international trade routes, and to secure global energy supply routes in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the Red Sea, and the Gulf of Aden.
Convinced that maritime security is a shared responsibility, and that cooperation and coordination among states constitute the fundamental pillar for addressing common and transboundary maritime threats, thereby contributing to enhancing global security, stability, and prosperity.
The founding states have agreed and adopted the following:
– The establishment of the Multinational Maritime Defence Alliance as a framework for maritime defence cooperation, aimed at enhancing maritime security, protecting freedom of navigation, securing international trade routes and energy supply lines, and safeguarding shared maritime interests in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the Red Sea, and the Gulf of Aden, in accordance with the provisions of international law, United Nations conventions, and international customs.
– The states participating in this statement will continue to complete the necessary domestic procedures for their formal accession to the Charter of the Multinational Maritime Defence Alliance, in accordance with the constitutional and legal procedures adopted by each state.
– Enhancing cooperation in the fields of maritime security, information and intelligence sharing, operational planning, joint exercises, lessons learned, training, capacity building, and the execution of joint maritime operations in accordance with the provisions of the Charter.
– Reaffirming that participation in the Alliance’s activities and operations remains a sovereign decision for each state, in accordance with its national systems and procedures.
– Reaffirming that the Alliance is purely defensive in nature, does not target any state, alliance, or international organization, and conducts all its activities within the framework of full commitment to international law, respect for state sovereignty, and protection of freedom of navigation.
– Calling upon states that share the Alliance’s objectives and principles to accede to its Charter in accordance with its provisions, thereby contributing to expanding cooperation and enhancing collective maritime security in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the Red Sea, and the Gulf of Aden.
– The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a founding and leading state of the Alliance, and hosts its permanent headquarters.
– The establishment of the Joint Command, the Command and Control Centre, the Joint Maritime Operations Centre, and the Secretariat General in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as the principal executive bodies of the Alliance.
– The founding states affirm that the establishment of the Multinational Maritime Defence Alliance represents a strategic step toward enhancing maritime security in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the Red Sea, and the Gulf of Aden, consolidating defence cooperation among member states, and supporting stability and prosperity, thereby contributing to integration with international efforts to protect international peace and security in accordance with the provisions of international law.
