What’s behind US Allegations of Russian Backing to Yemen’s Red Sea Operations?

Citing American officials, the WSJ reported that the diplomatic push includes using third parties to persuade the Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop joining Iran in providing arms to Yemen.

The newspaper added that information it received suggested that Moscow is likely planning to back Yemen militarily. 

The WSJ held that an American official said that the US warnings issued by the US Central Command (CENTCOM) raise a question: Is the White House doing enough to stop the attacks in the strategic waterways in the region?

According to the outlet, boost of Russia's relations with North Korea and Iran and seeking China's help in strengthening the defense industry have provoked the deep concern of American officials. It quoted American officials as claiming that Russia's decision to arm Sana'a shows the escalation of its confrontation with Washington, while since 2022, their face-off has only been revolving around the conflict in Ukraine.

Western officials and media outlets make claim of Russian armed support to Yemen's Ansarullah in carrying out naval and air operations against the interests of hostile countries in the Red Sea while the failure of the US and other Western countries that support the Israeli regime in fulfilling the mission of securing the Israeli navigation in the Red Sea is clear to the world— something that appears to have perplexed the White House officials who are zooming in on Moscow-Sana'a relations to crack the codes of their failure against Ansarullah. 

The Americans have not published any documents proving the veracity of their claims about the Russian weapons assistance to Sana'a and their claims rest on a White House argument about political ties between the two mainly established after Ukraine war. They point to the visits to Moscow of Sana'a leaders like a January visit of Ansarullah members to the Russian capital.

Also, remarks by Putin about making revenge on the West for its weapons support to Kiev are also cited by the Westerners to support their claims of Russian role in the Red Sea conflict. 

In a statement last June on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin emphasized: "If someone considers it possible to supply such weapons to a combat zone to strike our territory and create problems for us, then why do we not have the right to supply our weapons of the same class to those regions of the world from which the strikes will be carried out on sensitive objects of those countries that do this in relation to Russia?... That is, the answer may be symmetrical. We will think about it.”

What's behind US's anti-Russian claims? 

By accusing Moscow of providing help to Sana'a, Washington tries to ease the burden of its losses against Ansarullah. 

Because the failure of a country that has claimed to be the world's superpower for eight decades against a nascent movement in Yemen that has been under extensive sanctions for nearly a decade has tarnished the military image of the US in the world. The US, which has previously acknowledged Ansarullah's military power and labeled its operations in the Red Sea to be the biggest naval challenge for itself after World War II, wants to tell the world that it is not fighting Yemenis in the region, but is indirectly involved in a confrontation with Russia. The Americans think that they can attribute their defeat against Yemenis to Russia and save their face. 

Still, resorting to this threadbare policy will not save the US from the swamp it has stuck in because Ansarullah has proven that it does not get support from any country in its campaign and relies on itself for its military developments that help it strengthen its position against its enemies. 

Despite the extensive sanctions on Yemen, Ansarullah have been able to achieve great success in the sea, land and air confrontations and now, relying on this military power, they have put the Israeli regime and its Western backers in a tight spot. 

The Yemenis, who until a few years ago were only armed with light weapons and fought against the aggression forces, have now reached the point where they can target the Israeli and even American ships in the Red Sea.

The unveiling of hypersonic missiles and unmanned submarines in recent months shows the astonishing speed of the development of Yemen's military industries, which have caused the West by surprise. 

The drone attack on Tel Aviv last week that outmanuvered the Iron Dome system showed that Ansarullah has the ability to target the depth of the occupied territories. This disgraceful failure of the US and its allies against a movement that cannot be compared to the Israeli -Western camp in terms of military strength is a shame that will remain haunting Washington and Tel Aviv for a long time. 

Another driver for the US claims against Russia is that it intends to damage growing Moscow ties with the Persian Gulf Arab monarchies. Washington is worried that Riyadh and Abu Dhabi in recent years have chosen to improve their relations with Moscow and Beijing and distanced from the West and is trying break these tightening bonds by any means. 

After war broke out in Ukraine, Saudi Arabia and the UAE stood in the Russian camp, and within OPEC+ framework, they turned down the American request to increase oil output to curb the rallying energy prices. Some sources even reported that the UAE secretly signed a security agreement with Moscow and helps Russia companies circumvent sanctions, something suggesting that Arab ties with Russia are evolving to a strategic alliance. 

This is why the White House officials are trying to pretend that Russia has jeopardized the security and interests of the Arab states by fully supporting Ansarullah. The fact that Ansarullah has carried out missile operations in the Red Sea against Israeli ships and their Western supporters in the midst of the Gaza war is a threat to the security of navigation and world trade in the eyes of Arab rulers and their Western allies. Having in mind that the Red Sea and the Bab-el-Mandeb tensions are seen a big threat to the oil exports of the UAE and Saudi Arabia, the Americans are trying to send the message to the Arabs that the main cause of tension and instability in the region is Moscow, not Washington. 

However, the US efforts to accuse Russia of being a destabilizing party in the Red Sea will go nowhere as it is now obvious to all that the factor behind conflicts in the region is the US itself that fuels war with its unwavering support to the Israeli regime. Sana'a officials have always said that the US is to blame for crisis in the region, and instead of assuaging tensions, it is inflaming them with its backing to the Israeli genocide of the Palestinians in Gaza.