US, Saudi Arabia work on national defense strategy, the latter's first

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US military officials are aiding Saudi Arabia map out a long-term vision for the Kingdom’s national security, amid strained ties currently under reevaluation.

On Thursday, Gen. Michael “Erik” Kurilla, the top commander of US forces in the Middle East, confirmed that KSA will experience a first in its history by releasing a national defense strategy and a national military strategy next year.

“The Saudis are very interested in strategic plans with us,” Kurilla relayed to reporters through a conference call, adding, “Our strategic planners travel to the kingdom regularly to work with Saudi military leaders to build up their ideas for a long-term strategic vision.”

“A critical step” is how Kurilla described the decision instilled in Crown Prince MBS’ military modernization plans.

This comes in light of tensions arising between the US and KSA after the OPEC+ decision to cut down oil production which the US saw as a hostile act by the Kingdom and a sign of 'aligning with Russia'.

Reinstating US forces in the GCC

Back in May, the Pentagon’s Colin Kahl expressed full support for MBS' defense modernization goals, although Biden stopped the transfer of offensive weapons sales to Saudi Arabia and GCC countries in light of the war on Yemen.

Under the table, military officials at US Central Command have been secretly planning an informal regional defense coalition in the GCC region amid tensions with Iran. In October, three US defense officials aware of the plans revealed that the US military command responsible for the Middle East and Iran is formulating plans to construct a new military testing center in Saudi Arabia.

The center will develop and test new technologies to address the growing danger posed by unmanned drones, as well as integrated air and missile defense capabilities.

However, two additional experimental task forces under Kurilla's command, the Air Force Task Force 99 and Army Task Force 39, have already been set to start as an effort to showcase the potential in commercial unmanned technology linked with artificial intelligence.

The commander convened to discuss plans last month for counter-drone weapons testing with Saudi Royal Armed Forces chief Fayyadh bin Hamed Al-Ruwaili. “It is an incredibly strong relationship,” Kurilla expressed on Thursday.

In October, the US military shockingly revealed that Kurilla was on a US ballistic missile submarine in the Arabian Sea for about eight hours at an undisclosed location in international waters.