Not only do the Houthi rebels enjoy direct military and financial assistance from the Islamic Republic of Iran, but they have been shown to function as an indirect missile testing agency for the People’s Republic of China, according to an opinion published by The National Interest website.
The Author: Brandon J. Weichert, a Senior National Security Editor at The National Interest, found that Iran-backed Houthi rebels have proven themselves to be a harder nut to crack for the United States military than many within the Pentagon had hoped, adding “Since the outbreak of hostilities between Israel and Iranian-backed militants throughout the region, the Houthis have terrorized international shipping with their increasingly sophisticated anti-ship ballistic missiles (ASBMs). These systems, on top of being technically complex, are also becoming far more accurate than one might expect them to”.
Weichert found that this is especially worrying when one considers that many of the targets for the Houthis’ ASBMs are warships belonging to the United States Navy. Not even the mighty American nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, which have had several close encounters with the missiles, are immune to them.
He added that Chang Guang Satellite Technology, a Chinese satellite company, has been “directly aiding Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen by providing satellite imagery used to target U.S. and international vessels in the Red Sea,” according to Tammy Bruce, the spokeswoman for the United States Department of State.
For their part, the Chinese firm denies these allegations. Yet it is worth noting that such accusations are nothing new for this specific Chinese satellite firm. CGST was previously accused of assisting Russia’s Wagner Group in 2023 during the Ukraine War.
And given the bounty of information—and targeting data—that satellites can provide, it should come as no surprise that so-called civilian satellite firms such as CGST are shanghaied into the service of war—especially if the warring parties are aligned with the Chinese government.
Besides, China benefits greatly from the Houthis’ actions against U.S. warships near their shores. America’s resources are fungible: the better the Houthis are at harassing American warships in the Red Sea, the more likely it is that Washington will focus on fighting the Houthis in Yemen—depleting the resources available to deter a Chinese invasion of Taiwan.
Weichert concluded “If the Houthis were to sink an American aircraft carrier—a possible, though probably unlikely, outcome—it would be a devastating loss for the U.S. Navy, and would hamper its operations in the Indo-Pacific for years. This turn of events would be particularly advantageous for China, given that the aircraft carrier will likely be the primary weapon deployed against any Chinese attack on Taiwan. Going forward, if the U.S. government can prove that CGST’s satellites are being used to target American warships and enhance the lethality of America’s enemies, it will be necessary for the United States Space Force to destroy them. A foreign nation’s satellites can never again be allowed to endanger the lives of American sailors and marines.