It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Tuesday, December 19, 2023
Royal Navy Destroyer Joins Red Sea Maritime Security Force
HMS Diamond launches a Sea Viper missile to shoot down a Houthi drone (Royal Navy)
HMS Diamond has joined an international naval force on a dedicated mission to safeguard shipping in the Red Sea.
Just three days after the Portsmouth-based destroyer downed a drone fired at merchant shipping, Diamond has been assigned to the new Operation Prosperity Guardian, an international effort involving the USA, UK, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain.
Led by Combined Maritime Forces’ Combined Task Force 153 – which is responsible for security in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb narrows and Gulf of Aden – the operation has been established to ensure the free-flow of shipping through one of the world’s most important sea lanes.
That shipping has come under attack repeatedly in recent weeks with drones fired by Houthi rebels in Yemen – with US, French and British warships all called upon to take out the threats with air defense missiles.
Diamond’s actions in the small hours of Saturday morning is the first time a Type 45’s Sea Viper missile has been used in action and the first such shootdown by the Royal Navy since the 1990-91 Gulf War.
Ships from multiple nations will conduct maritime patrols in the region and respond as appropriate to threats to shipping.
The warships’ presence is also intended to reassure the maritime shipping industry, deter illegal activity, and promote safe navigation while protecting the free flow of international commerce on the high seas.
“The hostile actions of the Houthis, with their attacks on merchant vessels in the southern Red Sea, are a clear threat to the global economy and challenge the security, stability, and prosperity of all,” said United Kingdom Maritime Component Commander Commodore Phil Dennis, the senior Royal Navy officer in the Middle East. “Freedom of navigation and the unimpeded flow of goods and trade have long been central tenets of the Royal Navy."
An estimated 23,000 merchant vessels pass through the Bab-al-Mandeb choke point – with Suez the gateway to the Middle East and beyond for shipping from Europe.
Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, the US officer commanding the Combined Maritime Forces from their headquarters in Bahrain, underlined that safe passage of the Red Sea was “crucial for the world economy”.
He continued: “More than 10 percent of global trade transits the waters anchored by two globally strategic waterways – the Suez Canal and the Strait of Bab-al-Mandeb. Regionally, it has even greater impact, channeling trade across more than half the globe, ranging from Europe to Asia. An attack on a single ship may easily impact as many as ten or more nations.”
U.S. Weighs Military Options After Massive Houthi Drone Attack
The destroyer USS Carney downed a total of 14 drones Saturday morning
USS Carney launches a surface-to-air missile at a drone threat (file image courtesy USN)
The White House is weighing options for striking back at Yemen's Houthi rebels after a month of attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea, officials have told Politico.
Military options have been presented to the White House, according to Politico; however, the Biden administration has so far been reluctant to move beyond shooting down incoming drones and missiles. American officials (and their counterparts in allied nations) are said to be concerned about the risk of sparking a broader conflict with Iran, the state sponsor of the Houthi movement. Iran also has military proxies in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, and has the ability to interdict shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. Navy has positioned the carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Gulf of Aden, and three extra destroyers - USS Laboon, Delbert D. Black and The Sullivans - have entered the Mediterranean. The carrier USS Gerald R. Ford has had her deployment extended a third time to ensure continued coverage off Israel.
Houthi forces have been interfering with shipping since November 20, when they hijacked the car carrier Galaxy Leader in protest of Israeli operations in Gaza. The boarding and subsequent drone attacks did not sway the administration, nor the shipping industry, which continued to use the Suez Canal and Red Sea almost without change (according to the Suez authorities).
But the math has changed over the past few days. Four shipping lines have announced that they will skip the Red Sea and take the long voyage around Africa instead, adding about 1,900 nautical miles to a typical Asia-Northern Europe voyage. The military situation has also changed. U.S. CENTCOM reported on Saturday that the destroyer USS Carney had downed a total of 14 drones that morning. The command wrote in a social media message that “the UAS were assessed to be one-way attack drones and were shot down with no damage to ships in the area.” Previously the confirmed shootdowns were limited to single drones or a handful at a time, aimed at specific ships.
In addition to the U.S., France reported one of its vessels had shot down drones earlier in the week. On Saturday, UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps reported overnight the HMS Diamond had also taken down a suspected attack drone that was targeting merchant shipping in the Red Sea. HMS Diamond was just redeployed to the region and reached the Red Sea in recent days after being ordered to make a fast turnaround and depart the UK.
The U.S. Department of Defense is also reporting that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will be visiting U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, where he will discuss multilateral coalitions to counter the Houthi threat. "We will talk with them in a multinational framework about the work we're doing, particularly in light of increasing Houthi aggression in the Red Sea," the official said.
The U.S. already leads a multilateral coalition to ensure maritime security in the Middle East, the Combined Maritime Forces. However, many of its regional members have been slow to engage with this particular mission, even after multiple attacks.
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