‘Israel can offer stability,’ Haifa positions itself as vital regional hub for the Mediterranean

Frank Melloul, Ambassador of Haifa Bay & NextBay 53-City Alliance, an initiative promoting the development of Haifa Bay, joined i24NEWS host Bianca Zanini on Middle East Now, to discuss how Israel, and specifically Haifa Port, can be positioned as the new Mediterranean gateway for the India-Middle East-Europe trade corridor (IMEC). This comes amid continued disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, leaving many nations without stable trade routes.

IMEC was approved in September 2023, one month before October 7, as an initiative from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to build a corridor linking India, the Middle East and Europe. Melloul said that at the time, it was widely discussed as a hope, with the Israeli prime minister presenting a map of the corridor during a Rosh Hashanah address, calling it "the new road" and "the future of the Middle East."

However, following October 7 and the war against Iran, IMEC, which has been signed by the European Union, Saudi Arabia, France, Italy and Germany, Melloul says it is “no more a hope. It's a necessity." He described it as an alternative amid disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of the world's oil has been stuck for more than 100 days.

Asked about Saudi Arabia's recent security pact with Turkey and Pakistan, two countries often at odds with Israeli and Indian interests, Melloul cautioned against overreacting. He notes that Saudi Arabia is not part of the Abraham Accords, which function as "a framework for business" built around the idea of "peace against prosperity," while the new alliance is a security arrangement, calling it "totally normal" for regional powers to respond to threats from Iran.

Melloul said competition from the alliance could be beneficial, as it would "wake up the Israelis" to define their value proposition.

Melloul argues that compared to alternative routes through Syria, Lebanon, or Iraq, Israel offers stability, security, and technology as advantages. He pointed to the NextBay region's 53 cities in northern Israel, including 27 Arab cities, as evidence of coexistence, saying the area serves as the "laboratory of the coexistence" embodied by the Abraham Accords. He also cited plans by NVIDIA to build a major headquarters in northern Israel as a sign of the region's technological competitiveness.

Describing the NextBay initiative itself, Melloul said the project aims to unite the 53 cities around a single corridor and vision, calling the coordination itself a notable achievement. He said IMEC encompasses three types of corridors: transportation, data communication and energy, and that Haifa is well positioned across all three.

Frank Melloul is also the chairman of the i24NEWS channel.