On March 25, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian presided over a regular press conference, and confirmed an incident in the form of a question and answer: a Chinese ship was attacked by the Houthis in Yemen.
According to Chinanews.com, a reporter asked a question about the attack on a Chinese oil tanker by the Houthis in the Red Sea. The Shanghai Paper reported that the questioner was a "foreign media reporter" and that the specific name of the attacked vessel was the Chinese oil tanker "Huangpu".
Lin Jian, the new spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the first week of his tenure, said:
China has always opposed attacks and harassment of civilian vessels and advocates safeguarding the safety of shipping lanes in the Red Sea waters in accordance with international law. At the same time, China believes that the international community should quell the fighting in Gaza as soon as possible and create the necessary conditions for de-escalation of the situation in the Red Sea. China will continue to play a constructive role and make efforts to restore peace and tranquility in the Red Sea at an early date.
The answer did not negate reports of Houthi attacks on Chinese ships, but rather acknowledged the fact that the attacks were a fait accompli.
The author noted that the original source of this report was released by the US Central Command on social media platforms on the 24th. The report said that the Houthis fired four missiles near the "Whampoa" on the 23rd, and then fired another missile at the tanker.
Further information shows that the tanker sent a distress signal at the time, and the fire caused by the attack was extinguished within half an hour, but fortunately there were no casualties. At the moment, the tanker has resumed work.
Since the outbreak of the conflict between Israel and Hamas last October, the Houthis have begun attacking passing international merchant ships in the Red Sea waters in retaliation for Israel's solidarity with Hamas, declaring that they "only target Israeli ships or ships sailing to Israeli ports."
But in fact, the Houthis have not kept that promise. For example, on March 8 this year, the Houthis attacked the Singapore merchant ship Forward Fortune, which has no ties to Israel, in the Red Sea.
Now, the Houthis' move to "launch a mad attack even on Chinese oil tankers" further proves their "organizational nature" of going back on their word. As early as March 21, it was reported that an insider revealed that the Houthis had assured China and Russia that their ships would not be targeted.
Around the report, Lin Jian was also "interrogated" three times at a regular press conference the next day (March 22).
The reporters who asked questions were all foreign media, from the Russian state news agency TASS, the US Bloomberg news agency and the Press Trust of India. Among them, the Bloomberg reporter's question contained the most information.
The Houthis said they would not attack Chinese and Russian ships sailing through the Red Sea, saying that this was the result of talks between Chinese and Russian diplomats and high-ranking Houthi figures. Can you confirm that Chinese diplomats have exchanged views with the Houthis and reached an understanding? It is also reported that China and Russia have agreed to provide more political support to the Houthis in order to reach such an understanding. Can you confirm and provide more details?
Judging from Lin Jian's answer, he did not deny the Houthi claim. Of course, Bloomberg reporters were not able to obtain further information. And when Indian journalists tried to find out more information, they only got a "reset answer".
Although China has not indicated that it will take further action against the Houthis, the international community has already taken measures to contain the Houthis. Operation Prosperity Defenders, led by the United States and signed by more than 20 countries, has launched several rounds of military strikes against the Houthis. This includes the fact that when Singapore's cargo ship was attacked by Houthi missiles, the U.S. military and a number of coalition naval ships and aircraft quickly returned fire and shot down 15 drones. Recently, the U.S. military destroyed five Houthi unmanned surface ships and a drone in Yemen. The U.S. Central Command characterized the operation as "self-defense" with the aim of "maintaining freedom of navigation and the security of international waters." After the attack on the Chinese oil tanker, the US military did not hesitate and immediately took to the air over the southern part of the Red Sea to engage six Houthi drones and shoot down five of them.
It remains to be seen whether China will take similar countermeasures to deter the Houthis.