UAE diplomats urge USA to re-designate Houthi militia as terrorist organization
February 2, 2022, 7:42 am

UAE diplomats urge USA to re-designate Houthi militia as terrorist organization

Abu Dhabi-Skyscraper/Pixabay

The Arab News reported, news channel Al-Arabiya said, citing an opinion piece published in the Wall Street Journal, UAE diplomats have urged Washington to re-designate Yemen’s Houthi militia as a terrorist organization.

US Yousef al-Otaiba and UAE permanent representative to the UN Lana Zaki Nusseibeh wrote that the re-designation “would help choke off [the Houthis’] financial and arms supplies without restricting humanitarian relief for the Yemeni people.”

President Joe Biden’s administration revoked the Houthis ‘terrorist’ classification, which was introduced by former President Donald Trump last February.

The UAE diplomats also called on the US to provide the UAE with better anti-missile and anti-drone equipment in order for the country to continue defending itself against the Houthis.

Al-Otaiba and Nusseibeh wrote that “Better anti-missile and anti-drone capabilities are... needed. The US Patriot and Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) systems prevented an even greater loss of life in the January strikes."

This comes after Abu Dhabi was attacked three times in January by the Houthis, who targeted civilian sites using ballistic missiles and explosive drones, which led to the death of three residents.

UAE intercepts ballistic missile launched by Houthi militia

Al-Otaiba and Nusseibeh added: “The UAE will intensify its cooperation with the US to expand and improve this protective umbrella for itself, US assets in the region and other Gulf allies."

Washington had announced earlier that its military forces in the Gulf country deployed Patriot surface-to-air missiles to intercept Houthi attacks on the capital, Abu Dhabi.

In the opinion piece, Al-Otaiba and Nusseibeh also called for more pressure to be applied on Iran, which has providing the Houthis with both financial and military support.

Biden needs to put the Houthi militia on the terrorist list

According to a draft UN Security Council report circulated in January, Iran has been exporting thousands of weapons from the Iranian port of Jask on the Sea of Oman to Yemen.

Source: arabnews

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Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.