Sharm El-Sheikh hosted the 26th Arab Summit from 28-29 March. The summit coincided with the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the Arab League back in 1945. The summit also took place in a period of great turmoil and uncertainties in the Arab world, be it in Syria, Libya, Tunisia, Iraq or Yemen. In Yemen, things started deteriorating the second half of last year when the Houthis, allied with forces loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, began to use military force to conquer and take power. The descent of Yemen into instability and insecurity with the prospect of the Houthis dominating the country posed a grave threat to the security not only of Saudi Arabia, but also to other member states in the Gulf Cooperation Council. For the last six months, the growing power of the Houthis, backed by the Iranians, sent shockwaves across the Arab Peninsula and the Gulf region. The unchecked advance of the Houthis towards Aden, at the southern entrance of the Red Sea, proved to be the last straw for Saudi Arabia. At the head of a coalition of 10 countries, including Egypt, Riyadh decided to use military power to restore the status quo ante in Yemen, and thus to keep a tenuous regional equilibrium between the Arabs and the Iranians intact. The dawn attacks against Houthi positions began two days before the Sharm El-Sheikh Summit convened. It goes without saying that military operations in Yemen overshadowed the conference, for everyone realised whether within the Arab world or outside it that what was going on was nothing less than a military confrontation between the Saudi coalition and Iran. Coalition operations in Yemen was the military manifestation of such a confrontation that came to a head after years of Iranian ascendancy across the Middle East, reaching the southern border of Saudi Arabia in a move by Iran that was nothing but sheer strategic miscalculation. In his opening remarks to the Arab Summit, King Salman of Saudi Arabia insisted that military operations led by the Arab coalition in Yemen would continue until its objectives were reached; that is, the restoration of the political power of the central authority in Yemen under President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who attended the summit conference in Sharm El-Sheikh. How long will that take? Hopefully, sooner rather than later, before events on the ground get out of control. For now, the Arab coalition has limited its military operations to aerial bombardment and a naval blockade, while not ruling out ground operations. I hope things do not do that far, because if it does I am not sure the belligerents will be in a position to bring military operations to an end soon. We could witness a prolonged military engagement without an end in sight. In passing, I hope Egypt will not get entangled in ground operations once again in Yemen. In this context, Egyptian diplomacy should work to restore political dialogue in Yemen under the auspices of the United Nations. As a matter of fact, the secretary general of the United Nations made it clear before the Sharm El-Sheikh Summit that a political solution in Yemen is the only alternative available. Egypt should make sure that the Arab coalition works for the resumption of national dialogue among Yemen's various political parties and forces. The Sharm El-Sheikh Summit made an unprecedented breakthrough in Arab affairs when it agreed, in principle, to the formation of a joint Arab force to face “present challenges and defend Arab national security” according to the Arab League Charter and the Arab Joint Defence Treaty of 1950.Details concerning the missions and composition of such a force will be discussed in the framework of a commission that will be established by Arab Joint Chiefs of Staff, and will meet in a month's time. Its recommendations will be submitted to a meeting of the Arab Joint Defence Council (defined under Article 6 of the Joint Defence Treaty and comprised of Arab ministers of defence and foreign affairs). The agreement concerning such a force, which would be a voluntary one, and the Arab coalition conducting military operations in Yemen defined the Sharm El-Sheikh Summit both from a historical and a strategic point of view. The military operations in Yemen is the second instance when the Arab world decided to use force, on its own, to further its national interests. The first was the October War of 1973. In between the two dates, the Arab world has seen wars and military operations of one kind or another, but they were conducted in the context of foreign coalitions, and commanded by non-Arab powers. This time around, and after years of hesitation, uncertainty, and some would say Arab retreat in face of international and regional pressures and active interference in Arab questions, most often indirectly, the Arab system has successfully used military power to defend and further the national interests of its central powers. That in itself is a turning point, not only within the Arab world, but also in its relations with regional powers and their outside backers and allies. Such a breakthrough needs to be consolidated so as not to be the first and last time the Arabs willingly resort to force to counterbalance the use of force by other non-Arab powers on their own territories. It could be a significant and influential game changer. The proposed Joint Arab Force should be seen in this strategic context. Admittedly, the road will be long, but it is worth trying. The writer is former assistant to the foreign minister.
