A few days ago, 12 countries led by the United States issued a joint statement issuing an ultimatum to Yemen's Houthi rebels, warning them to immediately stop attacking merchant ships, otherwise they will bear the consequences.
[The United States unites 12 countries to issue an ultimatum to the Houthis]
"We demand that the Houthis immediately cease their illegal attacks, release all illegally detained vessels and crews, and hold them accountable for the consequences if the Houthis continue to threaten innocent lives and commercial flows in critical shipping lanes around the world," the White House statement reads. ”
A senior Biden administration official said that no other warnings are expected in the future, and the statement is an "ultimatum." In fact, as early as last month, the United States said that it would organize a multinational joint fleet to provide escort for merchant ships and fight the Houthis.
At the same time, China also made its position clear on the same day. On the same day, the UN Security Council held an emergency meeting on the situation in the Red Sea, at which China's Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Geng Shuang, said that China expressed concern about the multiple attacks in the Red Sea in recent times and called on relevant parties to stop attacking and harassing civilian vessels.
[Geng Shuang, Deputy Permanent Representative of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations]
The two permanent members of China and the United States spoke on the same day, and the signal sent was clear enough. More importantly, both the Chinese and American maritime forces have sufficient capabilities to cross oceans and seas to strike at the Houthis.
The fundamental reason why China and the United States have spoken out at the same time, and the United States has issued an "ultimatum", is that what the Houthis are doing now is really too much and has violated the interests of major powers.
If we open the map, it is not difficult to see that the Red Sea is strategically located, its northern end is connected to the Mediterranean Sea by the Suez Canal, and its southern end is connected to the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean by the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. If there is a major problem in the Red Sea, it will be as serious as the problem in the Suez Canal, and ships that originally passed through the Suez Canal will have to choose to detour from the Cape of Good Hope, the southernmost point of Africa.
In March 2021, the Suez Canal was closed for six days due to the grounding of a huge ship, costing the world's maritime trade billions of dollars every day. Now the Houthis have attacked and hijacked merchant ships along the way, and the consequences are actually the same. Now a number of shipping giants around the world have announced the suspension of Red Sea voyages, cargo ships detour to the Cape of Good Hope, and stop some cargo pick-ups.
[Now a number of shipping giants around the world have announced the suspension of Red Sea voyages]
This kind of impact is global, the United States and the West are affected, we are also affected, in the era of globalization, this is inevitable. One of the important reasons for China's restraint is that there is no direct armed threat to Chinese ships or personnel. But no one can say how long this situation will last, and the Houthis will not care about any "international influence" - there is no such thing as picking on the ship of the West and not the ship of the East.
In fact, the Red Sea mainly affects the trade between China and Europe, for example, the corn we import from Ukraine starts from the Black Sea, then enters the Mediterranean Sea through the Turkish Strait, then enters the Red Sea through the Suez Canal, and then enters the Indian Ocean from the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
【The strategic location of the Red Sea is very important】
In addition, our energy imports from the Middle East will also be affected to some extent. The latest news is that the Houthis have expanded their reach from the Red Sea to the Arabian Sea, which is a key lifeblood for our energy imports.
When the Palestinian-Israeli situation escalated in October, the Houthis began to attack, but at that time, because they only attacked and hijacked ships belonging to Israel, and the scope of influence was not large, so the major powers did not pay special attention, at most, the United States strengthened its escort efforts and fulfilled its responsibilities as allies.
But since mid-November, the Houthis have gradually expanded their attacks to include only one ship that is "related to Israel," even if it only stops through an Israeli port, or if it belongs to a shipping company that has Israeli shareholders. will be included in the Houthi strikes.
[Since mid-November, the Houthis have gradually expanded the scope of their attacks]
To tell the truth, this is actually equivalent to an "indiscriminate attack" -- the world's major shipping giants are all multinational corporations that absorb international capital, and how many companies do not have shareholders from Israel? The so-called "related to Israel" is just an excuse for the Houthi to strike indiscriminately, and to find a moral excuse for themselves.
Since December 19, the Houthis have carried out at least 23 attacks. The most recent attack occurred on January 3, when the Houthis fired two missiles at the container ship Tag, which is part of France's CMA CGM shipping group. CMA CGM said the ship's purpose was Egypt, not Israel.
On December 30 last year, the Singapore-flagged cargo ship Maersk Hangzhou, which belonged to Danish shipping companies, was attacked by Houthi missiles after entering the Red Sea, and the US military then sent two destroyers to respond by shooting down two incoming missiles. The next day, the U.S. destroyer destroyed three more small Houthi boats.
At present, the United States has already intervened, and after issuing the ultimatum, they should be getting stronger and stronger to clean up the Houthis. At the same time, China has also spoken out at the United Nations, urging the Houthis to stop their attacks. Now that China and the United States have made their attitudes clear at the same time, who will dare to stand up for the Houthis? Even Iran will not dare to act in a high-profile manner at this time, because a Houthi rebel will openly oppose China and the United States.