Red Sea Brief #22: Egypt Votes to Defend Saudi Arabia

Note: our interactive map shows where the events behind the Red Sea Brief and the Red Sea Legal Letter took place. Disclosure: Red Sea Futures’ proprietary agentic model assisted with the integration and formatting of pieces of this report. 

In This Issue

1. Egypt Backs Riyadh as Saudi Deposit Comes Due

2. Middle East Eye Publishes the Mecca Defense Agreement

3. Houthi Strikes Reach Both Coasts

4. A French Frigate Downs an Unclaimed Missile Near Bab al-Mandeb

5. Iraq Moves Its Trade Through Aqaba

6. Drones Hit an Oil Station on Sudan’s Line to the Red Sea

7. Egypt’s Creditors and Red Sea Shipowners Face Unconfirmed Risks

8. Aden and Washington Target Houthi Finances

Egypt Backs Riyadh as Saudi Deposit Comes Due

On October 26, Egypt’s House of Representatives authorized President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to take “the necessary measures to support the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.” No treaty binds Egypt to defend Saudi Arabia, and it is not yet a party to the Mecca defense agreement that Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed in August. Two factors tie Egypt’s interests to Saudi Arabia’s: Egyptian reserves rely on Saudi deposits, and the Suez Canal relies on ships that must sail past the Houthi coast to reach it.

The vote came as Egypt’s currency fell and Saudi deposits at its central bank came due. On October 22, the pound closed at a record 55.35 to the dollar, and on October 25, the Egyptian Exchange halted trading for 30 minutes after its EGX100 index fell 10 percent. Of the Saudi deposits, $5.3 billion fell due in October. On October 31, after the parliamentary approval, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported that Riyadh had agreed to renew the $5.3 billion for one more year. Neither government has confirmed the renewal.