The decision was announced at a high-level meeting hosted by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Defence in Riyadh on Thursday, attended by chiefs of defence and military representatives from 43 countries, including a delegation from the European Union.

According to a joint statement issued after the meeting, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, Egypt, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan, Yemen, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Sudan, Djibouti and Somalia endorsed the alliance’s founding declaration.

The alliance will focus on protecting freedom of navigation, securing international trade routes and energy supply lines, and enhancing maritime security in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

The founding states agreed that Saudi Arabia would serve as the alliance’s founding and leading state, with its permanent headquarters to be established in the kingdom.

The alliance’s executive structure will include a Joint Command, a Command and Control Centre, a Combined Maritime Operations Centre and a General Secretariat, all based in Saudi Arabia.

The meeting also reviewed the proposed charter, organisational structure and command-and-control framework for the alliance.

Under the joint declaration, member states agreed to strengthen cooperation through intelligence and information sharing, operational planning, joint military exercises, training, capacity building and coordinated maritime operations in accordance with the alliance’s charter.

The founding states stressed that participation in alliance activities and operations would remain a sovereign decision for each member state and reaffirmed that the alliance is purely defensive in nature.

The joint statement said the alliance does not target any country, alliance or international organisation and will operate in accordance with international law while respecting the sovereignty of states and the principle of freedom of navigation.

The participating countries also invited other states sharing the alliance’s objectives and principles to join the charter after completing their respective constitutional and legal procedures.

The initiative comes amid growing concerns over maritime security threats in one of the world’s busiest shipping corridors, through which a significant share of global trade and energy supplies passes.