MOSCOW, January 12. /TASS/. Washington's position on the Red Sea in the UN Security Council was only a pretext for escalation in the region, Russia condemns the US and UK strikes on facilities in Yemen, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a briefing.

"We are concerned that the US position in the UN Security Council on the Red Sea is just a pretext for further escalation of tensions in the region. We strongly condemn these irresponsible actions of the US and its allies," the diplomat said.

According to Zakharova, a large-scale military escalation in the Red Sea region could reverse the positive trends that have recently emerged in the Yemeni settlement process, as well as "provoke destabilization of the situation in the entire Middle East region."

Dangerous adventures

"As we warned, in order to justify their aggression, the Anglo-Saxons are trying to use the UN Security Council Resolution 2722, adopted the day before, under the pretext of ensuring the safety of navigation in the Red Sea. The Americans have been using such absolutely unscrupulous and illegal methods for a long time," the spokeswoman said. "We call on the international community to strongly condemn the attack on Yemen by a group of countries without a United Nations mandate," she emphasized.

According to the diplomat, the Russian side shares the concerns expressed by its regional partners, in particular Saudi Arabia, and calls for "intensification of international efforts to prevent further escalation of the situation."

"We assume that this adventure of the illegal coalition forces poses a direct threat to global peace and security. Guided by this understanding, we have demanded the urgent convening of a meeting of the UN Security Council, where we will voice our principled assessments of these illegal actions," Zakharova concluded.

On the US and UK strikes

In the early morning hours of Friday, UK and UK forces attacked Houthi targets in a number of Yemeni cities, including Dhamar, Saada, Sana'a, Taiz and Hodeidah, using aircraft, ships and submarines. US President Joe Biden said that the strike on Yemen was ordered in response to "unprecedented Houthi attacks" in the Red Sea and that the strikes targeting Houthi munitions depots, launching systems, production facilities, and air defense radar systems were delivered "in self-defense." US officials said that the strikes targeted rebel missile, drone and radar sites.