Turkey-Pakistan-Saudi Alliance Challenges Israel’s Regional Strategy Amid Economic Shifts

While Israel remains focused on its ongoing conflict with the Shiite axis in the Middle East, including Iran, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, a new Sunni alliance has emerged, exposing a significant strategic oversight for Israel. A recent agreement between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan has raised alarm bells due to the combination of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal, Turkish drones and navy, Saudi oil resources, and civilian nuclear capabilities that could collectively pose a future threat to Israel.

This alliance is further complicated by aggressive actions from two of its member states, contributing to Israel’s growing isolation and perception as a hostile entity in other parts of the world. Although the military threat remains largely theoretical and long-term, the immediate danger is economic and practical. Saudi Arabia sits at the heart of the IMEC corridor, a trade route envisioned by the Biden administration to connect India through Gulf states to the Israeli port of Haifa and onward to Europe.

Turkey, excluded from this route, now gains direct influence over Riyadh through the new alliance. Turkish President Erdogan can potentially bypass Haifa by redirecting the rail line northward without firing a missile. This situation highlights Israel’s missed opportunity: while it concentrates on military fronts, the Sunni sphere is reorganizing without Israel, partly due to Israel’s own political hesitations, including the stalled normalization with Saudi Arabia.

As a result, Israel risks being sidelined from a major regional economic transformation. The new strategic balance in the Middle East is being shaped not only by military capabilities but also by infrastructure and economic corridors, underscoring the importance of Israel’s engagement in these developments.