Russia's Support to Houthis via the IRGC to Restrict Red Sea Trade Routes

The Wall Street Journal reported that Russia has transferred satellite data through "members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps stationed alongside the Houthis in Yemen," helping them to increase attacks on Western ships. Previously, Reuters reported on the Houthis' intention to receive Russian anti-ship missiles. Analysts from the Russian publication "Agnestoo" believe that the increased cooperation between Russia and "enemies of the West" is the "unconventional response" that Vladimir Putin warned about regarding reciprocal actions against Western military aid to Ukraine. The Wall Street Journal, citing a knowledgeable source and two defense officials in Europe, reported that the Houthis have utilized satellite data provided by Russia to enhance their attacks in the Red Sea. According to the newspaper, "the information was transferred through members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps stationed alongside the Houthis in Yemen." This type of support from Russia, which had not been reported before, "shows how far Vladimir Putin is willing to go to undermine the economic and political order of the West." Why is Russia getting closer to the Houthis? The Houthis began their attacks in the Red Sea, a major global trade route along with the Suez Canal, in late last year to support Hamas and protest against Israel's aggression in Gaza, continuing into the early months of this year. According to the Wall Street Journal, since November 2023, the Houthis have attacked over 100 ships, sinking two and hijacking one. The Houthis' attacks have caused major disruptions in global trade, forcing ships to take longer and more expensive routes around Africa or to pass through this dangerous passage with their transponders turned off. According to data from Windward, a maritime analytics company, the traffic of oil tankers from Bab el-Mandeb, which connects the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean, has decreased by 77% in August 2024 compared to October of last year. Tankers moving under the orders of the Russian government with their transponders off to evade Western sanctions have also frequently been targeted by Houthi attacks. In an effort to protect international shipping lines, the United States formed a multinational coalition at the end of last year to escort commercial ships. According to the Wall Street Journal, by last spring, the U.S. had spent about one billion dollars to counter Houthi drones and missiles. Earlier this month, B-2 Spirit bombers attacked Houthi weapon depots. The U.S. considers the Houthis a terrorist group. Hamas is also designated as a terrorist organization in the U.S. and the European Union. However, Russia, which has always claimed to have friendly relations with all regional players, has elevated its cooperation with "America's enemies" to a new level since the start of the war against Ukraine and unprecedented tensions with the West. Recently, Mousa Abou Marzouk, Deputy Head of Hamas's Political Bureau, visited Moscow seeking more support from Russia, emphasizing that he meant "political support." Threats with unmanned submarines; what do we know about Houthi weapons? However, according to the Wall Street Journal, earlier this month, Viktor Bout, the "Merchant of Death," a Russian arms dealer who was imprisoned in the U.S. for years and returned to Russia last summer as part of a prisoner exchange, participated in negotiations to sell automatic rifles worth 10 million dollars to the Houthis. Reuters reported on negotiations between Russia and the Houthis mediated by Iran regarding the sale of anti-ship missiles, although the report stated that Russia has not yet made a definitive decision on sending these missiles. Additionally, the Middle East Eye reported on the deployment of advisors from the Russian Armed Forces General Staff's intelligence department in Sana'a. Rustam Suleimanov, a Yemen expert, confirmed this report in his article for the Carnegie Center, adding that "the role of Russian advisors is similar to that of Iranian military personnel in Yemen." Russia has sought to maintain its neutrality since the early days of the civil war in Yemen, but amid severe tensions with the West and unprecedented alignment with Iran, maintaining Moscow's previous position on Middle Eastern crises, including Yemen, has become nearly impossible, and only efforts to maintain relations with Saudi Arabia (which is an ally of Russia in controlling the global oil market) and the United Arab Emirates (which serves as a safe haven for wealthy Russians and is a major route for evading Western sanctions against Russia) have prevented Moscow from fully supporting Tehran's proxy forces in the region. Russia had previously attempted to maintain a balance between Israel and Iran, but in recent months has repeatedly criticized Israel and praised Iran's position. Russia and Iran are seeking to sign a strategic cooperation agreement as soon as possible. Russia, following a similar agreement with North Korea, does not hide that military cooperation between the two countries is a priority. Is the deepening Middle Eastern crisis beneficial for Russia? During his press conference on Wednesday, October 24, Vladimir Putin expressed serious concerns about the regional situation in response to a question about Russia's support for Iran in the event of a potential Israeli attack. The Russian president, referring to his negotiations with leaders of regional countries who traveled to Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan, for the BRICS summit, stated that no country in the Middle East desires to deepen the crisis and engage in war, and "we consider it our duty to help create conditions for reconciliation and to extinguish the crisis." He also emphasized that "Russia is not interested in deepening the crisis; war does not have strategic benefits for us and is accompanied by additional problems."