China, Russia, Yemeni Armed Forces Reach Red Sea Agreement – Report
What’s behind the reported agreement between China, Russia, and the Yemeni Armed Forces for safe passage in the Red Sea?
China and Russia have reportedly reached an agreement with the Yemeni Armed Forces affiliated with the Ansarallah group, which granted safe passage to their ships in the Red Sea, the US-based Bloomberg news website reported on Thursday, citing informed sources.
“China and Russia reached an understanding following talks between their diplomats in Oman and Mohammed Abdel Salam, one of the Houthis’ (Ansarallah – PC) top political figures, said the people, who asked not to be named,” according to the report.
According to Bloomberg, the agreement would provide political support to the Yemeni group within the United Nations Security Council and other international bodies.
Representatives from the governments of China, Russia, and the Ansarallah group did not comment on the report.
Cape of Good Hope
Starting last November, Yahya Saree, the Yemeni armed forces military spokesman, announced that “ships bound for the Zionist entity will not pass through if food and medicine do not enter the Gaza Strip”.
On November 19, the Ansarallah took control of the Israeli ship Galaxy Leader, hauling it and its crew to the Yemeni coast.
Since then, the group has vowed to target every cargo ship heading to Israel, regardless of its nationality and who operates it.
On March 14, Yemen’s Ansarallah leader, Abdul Malik al-Houth, further escalated, vowing to prevent Israeli-linked ships from crossing the Indian Ocean to the Cape of Good Hope.
Al-Houthi said that Ansarallah operations targeting ships in the Red Sea – Bab al-Mandab and the Arabian Sea – in support of Palestinian Resistance in Gaza will continue and will extend to prevent Israel-linked ships from even passing through the Indian Ocean towards the Cape of Good Hope route.
In response to the Ansarallah attack, the United States and Britain, in alliance with a few other countries, have launched military operations against Ansarallah starting on January 11.
The US-led alliance, so-called Prosperity Guardian, says that the airstrikes are aimed at weakening the group’s ability to threaten maritime navigation in the Red Sea.
The US-led attacks, however, are exasperating an already tense situation. Several international shipping companies have been forced to halt operations in the Red Sea or divert their operations to avoid Ansarallah strikes.
(The Palestine Chronicle)