Jeddah, Saudi Arabia –– On Sunday evening, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud met here the national security advisors of the US, UAE and India to discuss a proposal being pushed by the Washington to link West Asian countries through rail and connect the region to South Asia via sea lanes.
The countries also discussed ways to strengthen relations and ties in order to enhance growth and stability in the region.
According to a statement from the White House, the USA NSA Jake Sullivan met Saudi Crown Prince and the NSAs “to advance their shared vision of a more secure and prosperous Middle East region interconnected with India and the world.”
The statement added that “with the Saudi Crown Prince, he reviewed significant progress in talks to further consolidate the now 15-month long truce in Yemen and welcomed ongoing UN-led efforts to bring the war to a close, as well as covering a range of other issues.” He also thanked the Crown Prince for the support Saudi Arabia has provided to U.S. citizens during the evacuation from Sudan.
“The four delegations agreed to maintain regular consultations and follow up on the matters discussed throughout the day,” the White House statement said.
However, the reports in the Indian daily The Indian Express said that the meeting discussed the proposal to connect Middle East countries through rail — using Indian expertise — and connect the region to South Asia via sea lanes.
The participants, the paper reported, are expected to discuss the broad contours of the massive joint project to build railway, maritime and road connectivity in the larger region.
The development was first reported by the US news website Axios. It said the project is geared to counter the growing Chinese influence in the Middle East, as the region is a key part of China’s Belt and Road initiative (BRI).
“The US, Saudi, Emirati and Indian national security advisers are expected on Sunday to discuss a possible major joint infrastructure project to connect Gulf and Arab countries via a network of railways that would also be connected to India via shipping lanes from ports in the region,” Axios reported.
According to the website, the idea for the new initiative came up during talks held over the last 18 months in a forum called I2U2, which includes the US, Israel, the UAE and India. The forum was established in late 2021 to discuss strategic infrastructure projects in West Asia.
But the Biden administration later added Saudi Arabia.
The US NSA also talked about at this initiative during his speech Thursday at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
“If you remember nothing else from my speech, remember I2U2, because you will be hearing more about it as we go forward,” he said adding that plan is to connect South Asia, the Middle East and the US “in ways that advance our economic technology and diplomacy”.
Sullivan termed the regional integration in the Middle East was one of the pillars of the Biden administration’s strategy in the region.
“A more integrated, interconnected Middle East empowers our allies and partners, advances regional peace and prosperity, and reduces the resource demands on the US in this region over the long term without sacrificing our fundamental interests or our involvement in the region,” he said.
However, Israel, according to Axios report is not part of this initiative at the moment, but could be added to it in the future if efforts to normalise relations in the region make progress.
From the American side, the meeting was also attended by US Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Michael Ratney, the US National Security Council Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa, Brett McGurk, Special Presidential Coordinator at the Department of State, Amos Hochstein, and Senior National Security Advisor, Ariana Berengaut.