Putin Mulls Arming Houthis With Cruise Missiles: Report
Closer cooperation between Russia and the Houthis in Yemen could exacerbate the strategic dilemma facing Western powers as they seek to protect commercial shipping in the Red Sea and beyond.
There are indications that Russian President Vladimir Putin is considering supplying the Iran-aligned Yemeni Houthi movement with anti-ship ballistic cruise missiles, Middle East Eye (MEE)—citing an unnamed senior U.S. official—reported on Saturday.
Newsweek has contacted the Kremlin via email to request comment.
Moscow has been coordinating with the Houthis as part of its growing alignment with Iran, with the Kremlin seeking new and deeper alliances among anti-Western powers following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Since Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel and the country’s subsequent war in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis have been attacking commercial shipping and Western military vessels operating in the Red, Mediterranean Seas and Arabian Seas. The organization has vowed to continue and expand its attacks unless Israel fully withdraws from Gaza.
Earlier this year, the Houthis agreed not to target Russian or Chinese ships. In March, Houthi political bureau member Ali al-Qahoum said there is “a constant cooperation and development of relations between Yemen, Russia, China and BRICS states, as well as an exchange of knowledge and experience in various areas.”
“This is necessary to drown America, the U.S. and the West in the mire [the crisis] around the Red Sea, to get them bogged down, weaken and become unable to maintain the unipolarity.”
The BRICS group first comprised Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Its ranks expanded when Saudi Arabia, Iran, Ethiopia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates became members.
The Houthis are already believed to possess Russian-made P-800 Oniks supersonic anti-ship cruise missiles, acquired via Syria and the Lebanese Hezbollah militia. Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency reported in March that the group has begun producing its own hypersonic missile.
“The group’s missile forces have successfully tested a missile that is capable of reaching speeds of up to Mach 8 and runs on solid fuel,” an unnamed military source close to the Houthis told the news agency.
The U.S. dismissed the report. “Look, on the hypersonic thing, those reports are inaccurate,” National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters at a briefing. “There’s absolutely no indication that the Houthis have access to a hypersonic weapon. So, I can walk you off of that.”
But the organization may seek to bolster its arsenal with new Russian weapons. William Usher, a former senior Middle East analyst at the CIA, told MEE that an escalation of Israeli-Hezbollah border skirmishes into full-scale war “would likely deepen the military collaboration between Iran and Russia to bolster Hezbollah’s defense capabilities.”
“There are indications that Russia is already considering how it might assist the Houthis,” Usher said.
Among those seeking to dissuade such a move is Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, MEE reported, who in December spoke with Putin and reportedly spoke against the idea of sending new missiles to the Houthis.
Source » msn.com
