Ships and boats in the Strait of Hormuz, Musandam, Oman, May 1, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Stringer TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Israeli Transport Minister Miri Regev has warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that a new wave of cross-border infrastructure projects in the Middle East is deliberately bypassing Israel and threatens to permanently erode the country’s strategic and economic standing, Channel 12 reported.
In a letter sent to Netanyahu two weeks ago, Regev cautioned that regional commercial initiatives are routing trade around Israel through new supply routes.
“We are witnessing the rapid formation of regional partnerships in the fields of trade and energy that are deliberately bypassing Israel and pose a tangible strategic threat to our national security,” Regev wrote.
The minister argued that economic strategy could prove as consequential as military deterrence. “The long-term consequences of trade strategy can determine the outcome of the struggle without the use of weapons,” she added.
Among the projects referenced in the letter is a planned railway linking Saudi Arabia with Turkey via Jordan and Syria, after both countries signed agreements earlier this month to develop the route. The network is slated to eventually extend to Oman as part of an overland trade corridor that would bypass the Strait of Hormuz.
Other initiatives include the “Moses Bridge” corridor linking Saudi Arabia directly to Egypt, which would allow Riyadh to connect to Europe via Egypt’s Mediterranean gateway, as well as the “Development Road” corridor connecting Iraq, Syria and Turkey.
Regev also highlighted a “troubling trend” involving US-backed infrastructure development in Syria, as well as a reported $1 billion investment by the United Arab Emirates aimed at bolstering the new Syrian government as it seeks to reestablish itself within the international system.
These initiatives have taken on heightened strategic significance following the temporary closure of the Strait of Hormuz and disruptions to maritime traffic during the recent US-Israeli war with Iran, which exposed the vulnerability of global shipping lanes that carry a significant share of the world’s oil trade.
In her letter, Regev urged Netanyahu to lead a comprehensive diplomatic and economic response to counter the emerging regional realignment, warning that Israel must act quickly before alternative trade corridors become entrenched.
“The realization of these bypass scenarios would severely damage Israel’s geopolitical and economic standing, as well as its national security, and leave us outside the map of global trade,” she said.
The projects would also reverse years of efforts to establish Israel as a key land bridge between East Asia and Europe, depriving it of the strategic and economic benefits of serving as a major transit hub.
Israel has sought to anchor its regional trade role through the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC), a US-backed initiative unveiled in 2023 to connect India with the Gulf states, Israel and Europe. The project’s full realization has largely depended on a normalization agreement between Jerusalem and Riyadh that has yet to materialize.
