Jubail, Rajab 30, 1439, Apr 16, 2018, SPA -- Expressing appreciation of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for the generous patronage and directives to ensure that the Joint Gulf Shield I military exercise be a success, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, he reaffirmed that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia represents an immune Arab and Islamic fortress to deter elements attempting to threaten regional security. The Emirates-Saudi alliance is based on solid foundations of mutual respect, cooperation and understanding, to promote regional stability and maintain the pillars of Arab security, WAM, the Emirates official news agency cited him as saying. Emirates forces' taking part in the military drill, asserts that UAE, under the leadership of President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, commitment to work alongside brotherly and friendly nations to confront threats and challenges across regional and international arenas, he stated. The Joint Gulf Shield I and a large number of participating countries underscores the deep awareness of the complex circumstances in the region and the world, and the necessity for military coordination between regional actors to be able to deal with challenges that arise, especially those that interfere in regional affairs, and endorse extremism and terrorism, the heir apparent remarked. Holding of such a military exercise, the largest ever in the region, in Saudi Arabia, confirms the Kingdom's pivotal role as the pillar of regional security and stability, Sheikh bin Zayed commented, concluding that the complicated regional situation made it exigent to establish permanent military coordination to deal with its dangers, especially blatant intervention in the regional internal affairs, extremism and terrorism, as such percepts cannot be effectively dealt with, individually, except through bold alliances, on all political, military and security-wise levels. -- SPA 22:29 LOCAL TIME 19:29 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w669713