UNITED NATIONS, March 14. /TASS/. The naval operation of the US and its allies in the Red Sea has by no means promoted stabilization in the region, but on the contrary produced the reverse effect, Russia's First Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Dmitry Polyansky has said.
"We are all without exception interested in de-escalation in this area most important for commercial shipping. However, the operation in the Red Sea initiated by the Americans and their satellites has in practice caused not stabilization but the reverse effect," he said at a UN Security Council meeting. "The already complicated military and political situation in this part of the world has escalated to the extreme degree. Even the US military itself recognizes that the use of force by the so-called coalition has failed to produce the result Washington would like to see. As far as we can judge, they are unable to destroy or reduce the military potential of the Houthis, because the attacks have not only continued, but have become more frequent. One ship has already sunk and its crew members died. This is the price of escalation."
The Russian diplomat noted that as a result of the operation by the United States and its allies, "military hysteria in the region has grown immeasurably."
"This does not stop our American counterparts, however, because the sole type of diplomacy they recognize is gunboat diplomacy," he stated.
Polyansky also noted that Washington and London prefer to turn a blind eye on the obvious and try to "put out the fire with gasoline."
"This is the effect that more strikes on Yemen will have, which are nothing but another act of aggression against a sovereign Arab state," Polyansky said.
Following the escalation of the conflict in the Gaza Strip, the Ansar Allah movement warned that it would carry out strikes on Israeli territory and prevent ships affiliated with it from passing through the waters of the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait as long as the operation in the Palestinian enclave continued. Since mid-November last year, the Houthis have attacked dozens of civilian vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. In response to Ansar Allah's actions, US authorities formed an international coalition and launched Operation Prosperity Guardian in an attempt to ensure freedom of shipping and security in the Red Sea. On January 12, the armed forces of Britain and the United States, using planes, ships and submarines, for the first time hit the Houthis’ facilities in a number of cities in Yemen. The targets included the rebels’ missile and drone sites and radars.