Egypt stresses the need to protect freedom of navigation in the Red Sea.
The Egyptian assurances came during a phone call between Abdel-Ati and his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, to discuss developments in the Red Sea, according to a statement from the Egyptian Foreign Ministry on Saturday.
The Egyptian Foreign Minister stressed the "need to protect freedom of navigation in the Red Sea," and pointed to the "huge losses his country's economy is incurring as a result of declining Suez Canal revenues and the unstable situation in the region."
Attacks by the Yemeni Houthi group against ships passing through the Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Red Sea since November 2023, allegedly in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, have prompted major international shipping companies to halt operations in the Suez Canal, causing "a decline in canal revenues of more than 60 percent," according to official estimates.
In this context, the Egyptian Foreign Minister held talks with his Eritrean counterpart, Osman Saleh Mohammed, in Cairo on Saturday, which addressed bilateral cooperation frameworks and regional developments, particularly in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea.
There has been coordination between Cairo and Asmara recently regarding developments in the Horn of Africa region, through the "Tripartite Coordination Mechanism," which includes Somalia alongside the two countries. The mechanism was launched in Eritrea last October in the presence of the presidents of the three countries.
Egypt's economic losses due to Red Sea tensions were also emphasized by Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman Tamim Khalaf, who considered his country "one of the countries most directly affected by the instability in the Red Sea."
Speaking to CNN, Khalaf indicated that his country's monthly losses have reached $800 million, and a total of $8 billion, since the beginning of the aggression on the Gaza Strip. Commenting on the US strikes against the Houthis in Yemen, he said, "The way to end these attacks is to end the conflict in the Gaza Strip, and a political solution must be found through negotiations to achieve peace in the region."
Last week, US President Donald Trump ordered a military campaign against the Houthis to force them to stop threatening international shipping in the Red Sea.
According to Ambassador Salah Halima, a member of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs, the Egyptian talks with officials in Iran and Eritrea "are aimed at joint coordination in light of the rapid developments taking place in the Horn of Africa and ensuring the return of navigation in the Red Sea," in addition to "tension on the border between Eritrea and Ethiopia, due to Addis Ababa's insistence on access to the Red Sea coast."
Egyptian Foreign Minister receives his Eritrean counterpart (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared that "access to the Red Sea is an existential demand for his country." Addressing the Ethiopian Parliament on Thursday, he said that his country does not seek to achieve this through war, but rather through dialogue and peace with Eritrea and Somalia.
Halima explained, in statements to Asharq Al-Awsat, that "Ethiopian actions are met with a clear Egyptian position, which rejects any presence of non-coastal states on the Red Sea coast," in addition to "ongoing coordination from Cairo with Asmara, Mogadishu, and Djibouti to ensure maritime safety."
The Egyptian Foreign Minister has previously emphasized, on more than one occasion, his country's position of "rejecting the presence of any non-Red Sea state on its coast."
Asmara is counting on Cairo's support in confronting any threat to its sovereignty, according to Halima, who noted "the importance of coordination between the two countries to support Somalia in confronting recent terrorist attacks," in addition to "supporting Sudan and its national institutions in light of the current war within it."
The Egyptian Foreign Minister visited Asmara in early March, and during the visit, he discussed with Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki "strengthening and developing relations in various fields," as well as developments in Africa, particularly in Somalia, Sudan, and the Red Sea, according to the Egyptian Foreign Ministry.
Red Sea security is a priority for Cairo and Asmara, according to Egyptian expert on African affairs, Rami Zahdi, who emphasized the importance of "security coordination between the two countries to protect their interests in the region," in addition to "monitoring signs of escalating conflict in Ethiopia's Tigray region, which poses a direct threat to Eritrea."
