Russian Diplomat Says the U.K., U.S. Strikes Will Derail Peace Process in Yemen
A Russian diplomat said on Wednesday that strikes by the U.S. and U.K. on Yemen, launched in response to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, may cross out two years of settlement efforts in the war-torn Arab country. Speaking in an interview with the Russian state news agency TASS, the Russian charge d'affaires in Yemen Yevgeny Kudrov said, "in the best case", the launch of the political settlement will be postponed, and everything achieved in the last two years will be lost. "It is safe to say that the effect of the US-British reckless military undertaking in the Red Sea will be negative for the prospects of the Yemeni settlement," he said. The war in Yemen began in 2015, and it halted in April 2022 as the peace efforts continued to find a comprehensive solution to the conflict. The ongoing Houthi-U.S. faceoff risks plunging Yemen into war again.
China says it is deeply concerned about tensions in the Red Sea that have upended global trade by forcing many shippers to avoid the Suez Canal. China has been in "close communication with all parties concerned and making positive efforts to de-escalate" the situation in which Iran-backed Houthis have attacked international ships with missiles, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a daily briefing on Wednesday. He said, "We are deeply concerned about the recent escalation of the Red Sea situation. The Red Sea is an important international trade route for goods and energy," Wang said. "China is willing to work with all parties to cool down the situation and maintain security and stability in the Red Sea," Wang said. China exported more than $3.5 trillion in goods in 2022, the last year for which figures were available. That was about $1.5 trillion more than the United States, the world's No. 2 exporter.
An explosion went off near a vessel south of Yemen on Wednesday, a British maritime security agency said, in the latest suspected attack on Red Sea shipping by the Iran-backed Houthis.The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said it had received reports of "an explosion approximately 100 meters from the vessel" 50 nautical miles south of the Yemeni port of Mocha. UKMTO added that the vessel and crew were safe and had no reports of any injuries or damage. The Houthis began strikes in the Red Sea in mid-November, saying they were targeting Israeli-linked vessels in support of Palestinians in Gaza, which has been ravaged by the Hamas-Israel war.
On Wednesday, the U.S. military carried out more strikes in Yemen early this morning, destroying two Houthi anti-ship missiles that were aimed at the Red Sea and were preparing to launch, the U.S. military said in a statement. The U.S. strikes, which took place at roughly 2.30 am local time, are the latest against the Iran-backed group over its targeting of Red Sea shipping and followed a larger round of strikes a day earlier. The Houthis have said their attacks are in solidarity with Palestinians as Israel keeps destroying Gaza. The attacks have disrupted global shipping and deepened concern that fallout from the Israel-Hamas war could destabilize the Middle East.
