The US president realizes that the Yemeni group is a “formidable fighting force,” the University of Chicago political scientist says
US President Donald Trump has effectively abandoned Saudi Arabia, a key ally in the Middle East, leaving it to face “almost a full-blown war” with Yemen’s Houthis, political scientist and University of Chicago Professor John Mearsheimer said in an interview with RT.
Hostilities between Riyadh and the Shiite militant group, officially known as Ansarullah, have flared up in recent weeks after several years of relative calm. The Houthis have launched missile and drone attacks on Saudi territory, while Riyadh-backed government forces have tried to hold off the group’s advances inside Yemen.
Earlier this month, the Houthis seized control over Yemen’s Red Sea coast, taking positions around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait – a key waterway which Saudi Arabia has increasingly relied on for oil exports since navigation through the Strait of Hormuz was reduced to a trickle amid the US-Israeli war against Iran.
In an interview with New Order host Afshin Rattansi on Sunday, Mearsheimer said that because of its “foolish” decision to “attack the Houthis and pick a fight with them,” Saudi Arabia has found itself in “really deep trouble.” He added that the “Houthis are a formidable fighting force, and the Saudis are not.”
He went on to suggest, citing media reports, that Trump encouraged Riyadh to strike an airport in the Houthi-controlled Yemeni capital, Sanaa, in mid-July. The attack, which was apparently meant to prevent an Iranian plane carrying a Houthi delegation from Tehran from landing, shattered the UN-brokered 2022 truce between the Saudis and the Houthis, triggering the current escalation.
Mearsheimer gave credence to claims made earlier this month by the New York Times, which said Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman phoned Trump on multiple occasions in recent weeks, asking for military support against the Houthis. The president decided, however, not to intervene, according to the NYT. Trump was reportedly close to authorizing strikes on the Houthis last weekend, but reversed his decision at the last minute.
According to Mearsheimer, “the last thing [Trump] wants to do is get into a fight with [the Houthis] to try to rescue Saudi Arabia” – not least because of how badly America’s attempt to bomb the Houthis into submission went last year.
Less than two months into the campaign, Trump abruptly announced a ceasefire, declaring victory and saying the Houthis promised not to attack US ships.
“But in fact, the Houthis beat the United States. We did not defeat the Houthis,” Mearsheimer said.
Speaking to Al-Mayadeen on Saturday, the head of the National Security Committee in the Iranian Parliament, Ibrahim Azizi, warned neighboring Arab nations against cooperating with the US and allowing it to use their territory as a launchpad for attacks.
Azizi added that the US security umbrella in the Middle East has proven to be ineffective.
