A picture of the Houthis targeting a ship heading to Israel with a drone (Anatolia)
On Wednesday, the Financial Times newspaper quoted American officials as saying that the United States asked China to urge Iran to curb Houthi attacks in Yemen on commercial ships in the Red Sea, but it did not receive any indication that Beijing was ready to provide any support in this regard.
The newspaper report stated that the United States repeatedly raised this request before senior Chinese officials during the past three months.
He pointed out that White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and his deputy John Feiner discussed this request during meetings held in Washington this January with Liu Jianzhou, head of the International Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.
The report added that US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken discussed this issue with his Chinese counterpart.
He explained that American officials believe that there are little indications that China has exerted any pressure on Iran to curb Houthi attacks, in contrast to a lukewarm statement issued by Beijing last week.
Earlier on Wednesday, the US army carried out strikes in Yemen that resulted in the destruction of two Houthi anti-ship missiles that were in the process of being launched towards the Red Sea.
American and British forces launched attacks in Yemen on Monday, targeting an underground storage site belonging to the Houthis, in addition to destroying missile and surveillance capabilities used by the group to attack commercial ships in the Red Sea.
As an expression of their solidarity with the Gaza Strip - which has been witnessing a devastating war since October 7, 2023 with American support - the Houthi group carried out missile and drone attacks on cargo ships in the Red Sea owned or managed by Israeli companies or transporting goods to and from Israel.
These attacks disrupted global shipping traffic, raising concerns about global inflation, and deepening fears that the repercussions of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip would destabilize the Middle East.
Last Wednesday, the United States announced the designation of the Houthi group, also known as "Ansar Allah", as a global terrorist organization in the context of its attacks in the Red Sea.
Source: Reuters