The U.S. President Trump’s effort to restore freedom of navigation is certainly laudable (albeit undercut by the billing plan), but ship-owners, not governments, will decide when the Red Sea reopens, and ship-owners will not return — and risk their crew and assets — if there’s even a chance of Houthi rebels attacks, according to a Lloyd’s List’s Daily View.
Thus, the US expects to be paid back for its Red Sea effort. “Per the president’s request, we are working with DOD (the Department of Defense) and State to determine how to compile the cost associated and levy them on the Europeans,” said national security advisor Michael Waltz.
An account named “S M” (which Goldberg assumed was White House chief of staff Stephen Miller) said, “If the US successfully restores freedom of navigation at great cost, there needs to be some further economic gain extracted in return.”
The Trump administration may be in for a long wait to collect that bill.