An Asian alternative to Nato? How Cica is rethinking Middle East security

AdvertisementCentral AsiaChinaDiplomacyAn Asian alternative to Nato? How Cica is rethinking Middle East security

Chief of lesser-known security forum says it provides ‘architecture for de-escalation’ and allows members to project soft power

5-MIN READ5-MIN Listen

Victoria BelaPublished: 10:00am, 6 May 2026As ceasefires fail, peace talks stall and the Strait of Hormuz remains under a blockade, the deepening Middle East crisis has exposed the structural limitations of global security frameworks.The US-Israel war on Iran since February has strained United Nations bodies and left Nato reeling over US President Donald Trump’s threats to leave the transatlantic security alliance.With the risk of a protracted war looming, there is an often overlooked security grouping – whose member states include both Israel and Iran – that could present a different soft power approach to regional security.Advertisement

While the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (Cica) lacks a mandate for direct intervention, its 28-member platform for security dialogue unites key Middle Eastern nations and major powers across Asia.

Members include the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Palestine, Egypt, Kazakhstan, India, Russia and China.

Advertisement

Kairat Sarybay, Cica’s secretary general, said that while member states held divergent views on particular issues, “they are still able to agree on some ideas where they can cooperate”.

In an interview held on the sidelines of the Regional Ecological Summit in Kazakhstan last month, Sarybay noted that global geopolitical rivalries and turbulence were affecting all multilateral organisations.AdvertisementSelect VoiceSelect Speed0.8x0.9x1.0x1.1x1.2x1.5x1.75x00:0000:001.00x