On Tuesday, 28 July 2026, the joint military exercise Bahrain Shield began in Bahrain with the participation of the armed forces of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states. The purpose of the manoeuvres is to practise coordinated operations and enhance the combat readiness of military units across the region.
This raises an important question: why was the exercise named Bahrain Shield, after a small island state located near Saudi Arabia and connected to it by a strategically important causeway?
The answer lies partly in the fact that Iran has historically regarded Bahrain as part of its territory. Moreover, the majority of Bahrain’s population is Shiite, creating a degree of internal vulnerability. Since its establishment in 1979, the Islamic Republic has positioned itself as the protector of Shiite Muslims.
It has long been clear that Iran seeks to exploit Shiite communities to build its own regional empire by rallying them around Tehran and undermining the sovereignty of countries such as Lebanon and Iraq. The regime of the ayatollahs also aspires to establish its hegemony over the oil-rich Gulf monarchies, which it regards as allies and accomplices of the United States and Israel.
It is worth recalling that Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates were the first Gulf states to join the Abraham Accords and normalise relations with Israel. This development significantly weakened the Islamic Republic’s influence in both countries. This may help explain why Iranian missiles were reportedly directed at these states in the first place.
Source: Getty Images
The UAE successfully repelled missile attacks against its territory, largely thanks to Israeli air defence systems, which were reportedly operated with the assistance of Israel Defense Forces instructors.
Nevertheless, the fragmentation and military weakness of the Gulf states continue to encourage the expansionist ambitions of the Iranian regime. Tehran’s nuclear ambitions and missile programme are a particular source of concern.
Against this background, it becomes clear that protecting Bahrain’s sovereignty is directly linked to the national interests of all GCC member states.
The Bahrain Defence Force stated that the exercise was intended to strengthen joint defence cooperation, facilitate the exchange of operational experience and assess shared military systems.
The Gulf Cooperation Council consists of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar. Their combined gross domestic product amounts to approximately $2.36 trillion, compared with Iran’s GDP of around $363 billion.
Despite this enormous economic advantage, the armed forces of the Gulf states have so far demonstrated only limited independent capabilities. Their principal security guarantee continues to be the presence of US military bases in the region.
However, recent events indicate that these countries must begin developing their own armed forces and defence industries while also establishing an effective unified military command.
It should be noted that the Bahrain Shield exercise is taking place against the backdrop of an extremely fragile ceasefire established after the United States and Iran halted their attacks following a 13-day escalation that began on 11 July.
During the confrontation, the United States carried out strikes against targets inside Iran, to which Tehran responded. Iranian missiles struck several Arab countries, including Jordan and Egypt. In the Egyptian port of Damietta, located in the Nile Delta, two large vessels reportedly caught fire following a drone attack.
According to The New York Times, Iranian representatives allegedly claimed that the attack was intended to demonstrate the scale of disruption that could affect global energy supplies if Tehran decided to escalate further.
Should this account be confirmed, the risk of a major expansion of the conflict across the Middle East would increase considerably. Egypt had previously remained outside the geographical scope of Iranian strikes.
This is particularly significant because approximately 10% of global maritime trade passes through the Suez Canal, which connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Red Sea.
Another indication of the conflict’s expansion was the launch of drones by Iran-aligned Shiite militias in Iraq against Saudi Arabia, followed by retaliatory strikes on their positions.
Immediately after the strike in Iraq, the Saudi Ministry of Defence officially stated that the kingdom’s armed forces, in coordination with US Central Command (CENTCOM), had struck targets belonging to Iran-backed armed groups in Iraq. The operation was described as a response to Iranian drone attacks on Saudi oil-processing facilities.
At the same time, the Houthis announced that they had shot down a Saudi aircraft over Yemen.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree stated that their forces had shot down a Saudi Karayel reconnaissance drone early in the morning while it was allegedly conducting hostile operations in the airspace over Saada Governorate.
He stressed that the “patriots of Yemen” would continue to defend the country’s sovereignty and reserved the legitimate right to respond to any violation.
The Houthis are once again threatening to close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which links the Red Sea to the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal. As a result, one of the world’s most important maritime trade routes between Europe and Asia remains under threat.
Source: Anadolu Agency
The importance of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to Saudi Arabia has increased sharply amid Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. Riyadh has redirected approximately 70% of its oil exports to the Red Sea port of Yanbu.
According to data from Kpler and Signal Ocean, around four million barrels of oil per day have passed through Yanbu in recent weeks. A year earlier, the port handled fewer than one million barrels per day.
The total volume of oil transported through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait reached 7.4 million barrels per day in June, equivalent to approximately 7% of global oil production.
These developments are raising legitimate concerns about possible disruptions to regional oil and gas exports. The new risks are directly linked to the security of one of the world’s most important hydrocarbon transport routes and highlight the need to identify safer and more reliable energy supply corridors.
The joint exercises conducted by the Gulf states once again underscore the importance of their ability to guarantee their own security and coordinate their actions should hostilities resume between the region’s principal powers.
The leaders of these countries must also urgently consider how they would protect their national interests in the event of a US withdrawal from the region. Such a scenario would not be unprecedented: Britain once withdrew hastily from the Middle East, leaving the region’s states to confront a new security environment.
Under these circumstances, the expansion of the Abraham Accords could play an important role. The experience of the United Arab Emirates already demonstrates the potential of these agreements to contribute not only to diplomatic normalisation but also to broader regional security cooperation.
