Paper tiger: Erdogan arrives to save bin Salman in his last opportunity
Yaakov Nagel, former National Security Advisor and head of the NSC, provided his perspective during an interview on 103FM regarding the defense agreement being formed between Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan: "Saudi Arabia is in many ways a paper tiger."
Brigadier General (res.) Prof. Yaakov Nagel, former National Security Advisor and head of the NSC, was interviewed this morning (Friday) on 103FM and addressed the defense agreement between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan.
"One must understand that Saudi Arabia, despite all its wealth and weaponry, is in many ways a paper tiger. It has a lot of weapons and a lot of money, but it fails to 'finish the day' militarily," Nagel said.
He further added: "If we examine the war in which the Saudis tried to fight the Houthis, we will see that they failed despite all the advanced means at their disposal. They have many assets, but nothing is truly liquid, and they have reached a situation where they need help economically."
"I do not see the Turks sending their navy to attack the Houthis just because they attacked the Saudis. It simply does not fit my realistic perception of the region," he emphasized.
Therefore, he believes that Saudi Arabia is looking for alternatives: "It understands that it is in a difficult situation, both monetarily and security-wise. Even before the recent wars, we saw them make a surprising move and sign an agreement with Iran, simply because they are afraid and feel exposed to the tangible Iranian threat, and to its militias in the Middle Eastern space."
Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree on the escalation with Saudi Arabia (Photo: Arab social networks).
He added on the subject: "The problem of the Saudis is that they hold the most sophisticated equipment, aircraft, and intelligence, but they simply do not know how to operate this power effectively on the ground. Therefore, all the talk about new alliances with Pakistan or Turkey should be taken with a very large grain of salt."
At the same time, he tried to explain the Saudi interest: "It is more of a political maneuver intended to exert pressure on the American administration," said Prof. Nagel. "The Saudis are disappointed with the conduct of the United States, especially in light of the shortage in the inventory of missiles and interceptors that they identify in the West, and they are trying to signal that they will not remain alone in the campaign against the Shiite axis."
