WASHINGTON July 03. 2024 (Saba) - The American magazine "Foreign Policy" confirmed the failure of intensive Western naval operations that lasted for several months to stop Yemen's attacks in the Red Sea.
The magazine said: After more than six months since the start of the Yemeni armed forces' attacks in the Red Sea, global shipping had to "deal with and come to terms" with the current normal situation, as "delays, confusion and rising costs are getting worse."
It pointed out that this comes despite the efforts made by the US, British and European naval forces that were present all the time in an attempt, "in vain, to neutralize Sana'a's attacks."
The magazine stated that the appearance of the world's leading naval forces struggling to subdue the Yemeni armed forces raises "painful questions" about the usefulness of naval power and the efficiency of Western naval forces that are supposed to "bear the burden in any future confrontation with a major competitor such as China."
The magazine quoted Sebastian Bruns, a naval expert at the Center for Maritime Strategy and Security and the Institute for Security Policy at Kiel University in Germany, as saying that the Yemenis “have proven to be a formidable force.”
He added: “They are a non-state actor with a larger arsenal, and they are really capable of causing headaches for the Western coalition. When navies have a sustainability problem at this level, it is really worrying.”
Foreign Policy reported that “the disruptions caused by these operations were not expected to last long, especially after Western navies arrived on the scene,” noting that insurance premiums for shipping companies “decreased slightly” when the joint US-UK deployment was announced, and shipping costs stabilized in the spring.
However, eight months later, the shipping disruptions have suddenly become “much worse.”
It described the US Central Command’s public messaging as a near-daily “drumbeat” of reports of US ships striking drones, missiles, and unmanned surface vessels.
The Yemenis, who have made extensive use of anti-ship missiles, are now increasingly turning to drones.
As a result, shipping container costs have soared from an average of $1,600 or so to more than $5,000, according to S&P Global Commodity Insights.
The magazine also noted that the U.S. and British navies, along with a rotating group of European ships, have been trying to restore normal shipping since the start of the Yemeni attacks “with little success.”
This is evident from the fact that insurance rates covering ships at risk of war, particularly those transiting the dangerous passage, remain nearly 1,000 percent higher than pre-attack levels.
resource : Saba
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