Saudi crown prince lands in Egypt to meet Sisi

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrived in Cairo on Tuesday ahead of meetings with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Egyptian state-linked media said. The visit comes as the kingdom vows to respond to attacks by Yemen's Houthis.

Why is the Saudi crown prince meeting Sisi in Egypt?

The regional powers are expected to discuss the threat posed by Houthi control over the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a key shipping route vital to both Saudi oil exports and Egypt's Suez Canal revenues. The de facto Saudi ruler "arrived in Egypt on an official visit," according to Al-Qahera News, which is close to Egyptian intelligence services, while Riyadh's foreign ministry described it as a "working visit."

Last week, the Houthis seized control of Yemen's Red Sea coast and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, threatening the last direct route to Asian markets for the world's largest oil exporter. Bab al-Mandab, the southern gateway to the Red Sea and Egypt's Suez Canal, has become essential for Saudi oil exports this year, since the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked by the US-Iran war.

How has the Houthi blockade affected Saudi oil exports?

Since the Houthis declared a naval blockade on the kingdom in July, Saudi Arabia has relied more heavily on Egypt to export oil, chiefly through its overland Sumed pipeline. Crude is transported from the Saudi Red Sea port of Yanbu to Egypt's Ain Sokhna, then carried overland through the pipeline to the eastern Mediterranean at Sidi Kerir.

A recent drone attack, which Riyadh said was launched from Iraq, forced it to shut the East-West pipeline that feeds Yanbu. That disruption helped push global oil prices above the $100 threshold.

What is at stake for Egypt's Suez Canal revenues?

Disruption to Bab al-Mandab could land Egypt with heavy losses too, since Cairo relies on Suez Canal tolls for crucial foreign revenue. Revenues from the waterway are currently around half of what they were before the Houthis started attacking ships in 2023, in what the group said was an act of solidarity with Palestinians during Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said last week that Cairo's Suez Canal losses stood at $11 billion.