The United States and its allies are stepping up efforts to curb the smuggling of Iranian weaponsfor the Houthis in Yemen, according to an analysis published by Atlantic Council magazine.
Eleonora Ardemagni who is an Italian expert on Yemen and the GCC states, suggested that US President Donald Trump’s redesignation of the Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) on just the third day of his presidency, combined with the reinstated “maximum pressure” sanctions policy against Iran, aim to target pro-Iran financial and weapons’ networks, adding that these goals dovetail with the Yemen Maritime Security Partnership, launched in November by the United Kingdom with US backing, to support the Yemen Coast Guard (YCG).
For the United States, Ardemagni thought, a stronger maritime partnership with Yemen’s Internationally Recognized government and allied forces Yemen can be the first step to curb armed groups’ rising offensive capabilities in the Red Sea region.
Ardemagni noticed that “Task forces of the US-led Combined Maritime Forces have often seized dhows carrying Houthi-destined weapons in international waters, while the YCG could effectively complement the effort within Yemeni territorial waters.
In recent months, the YCG has increased the interception of Iranian-provided weapons bound to the Houthis. For instance, on February 13, the YCG intercepted a cargo vessel carrying a substantial number of weapons that had departed from Djibouti towards the Houthi-controlled port of Al-Salif in Hodeida.
According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, most of the Coast Guard’s vessels operate in the Red Sea, not in the Arabian Sea. This is the case even though much of the Houthis’ smuggled weapons enter Yemeni territory through the Arabian Sea (Hadhramaut and Mahra) and the Gulf of Aden because of transhipment off the Somali coast.
Ardemagni also noticed that “In the Red Sea region, the smuggling of weapons goes beyond the Houthis, but the Houthis—with Iran’s backing—increasingly are the actor driving this trade. The rise of instability on both shores of the Red Sea (Yemen, Sudan, and Somalia), with non-state armed groups developing growing offensive capabilities, makes the task of curbing arms smuggling even more urgent for the United States and regional allies. It starts with going after the financing.
Ardemagni concluded that “A more proactive stance by the United States against weapons smuggling off the coast of Yemen would also reduce risks of strengthened military ties between the Houthis and Russia. According to several media reports, the Iranian-backed group has been in talks with Moscow for the provision of weapons, a development facilitated by the Russian-Iranian strategic partnership. Russia’s military intelligence personnel have reportedly been spotted in Houthi-held areas of the country.
https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/menasource/trump-red-sea-weapons-smuggling-yemen-houthis/