In a classified letter, US Central Command commander General Michael Kurilla warned Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin that US military operations to keep the Red Sea open to commercial traffic are "failing." General Kurilla's warning to Austin and his cronies predicted that “U.S. service members will die if we continue going this way.” According to reports, there was a sudden demand for brown trousers in the upper reaches of the Pentagon.
Unlike a seeming majority of US military commanders, Kurilla, one of the few true warriors to slip through the fine sein of corporatism to reach the upper ranks (Kurilla kicked down doors in Mosul and was wounded three times in one engagement), had the moral courage to tell the truth and not engage is happy talk so the intricate bowel movements of Austin and Biden aren't disturbed.
Kurilla called in his letter to Austin for a stepped-up “whole of government” effort against the Houthis, employing economic, diplomatic and potentially stronger military pressure to discourage attacks on ships in the Red Sea and a narrow strait known as Bab el-Mandeb, off Yemen’s coast, officials said. At least 30 ships have been damaged, and two have sunk.
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A second defense official who defended the current policy said that the U.S. and its partners have destroyed “a significant amount of Houthi capability,” including hundreds of missiles and launchers, hundreds of attack drones, dozens of storage facilities for weapons and equipment, numerous command and control targets, air defense systems, radars and several helicopters.
But some Central Command officials say their forces have been unable to prevent the Houthis from regularly threatening commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb because they haven’t had the approval to carry out a broader range of strikes.
There is no doubt we are getting our asses kicked in the Red Sea. That is happening for one reason. Our foreign policy and defense strategy establishments are running on empty. The Israel Air Force has done more to establish dominance over the Houthis in one airstrike than we have in a year of half-hearted and hamstrung efforts to keep a vital international maritime route open.
The report, titled “Yemen: Houthi Attacks Placing Pressure on International Trade,” comes as the Iranian-backed Houthi forces have carried out numerous attacks on commercial shipping in the south Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November 2023, endangering civilian crews and jeopardizing a crucial global trade route. The group has ignored calls from the United Nations and other international entities to cease their maritime aggression.
The Houthis, non-state actors based in Yemen, have enhanced their military prowess with Iranian aid since 2015. Attacks have targeted ships en route to Israeli ports and those linked with the United States and its allies, compromising regional security, hindering international humanitarian efforts, and straining on global maritime trade.
According to the DIA, Houthi attacks are responsible for a significant drop in container shipping through the Red Sea, with a 90% decrease since December 2023, affecting 10-15% of global maritime trade.
The consequences of the Houthi attacks have been widespread, affecting at least 65 countries, as well as 29 different energy and shipping firms.
The report also highlights the additional costs for alternate shipping routes around Africa, including increased transit time, additional fuel costs, and increased insurance premiums. According to the report, alternate shipping routes around Africa, despite adding about 11,000 nautical miles, approximately $1 million in fuel costs per voyage, and 1-2 weeks of transit time, can be less expensive than the combined costs of crew bonuses, war risk insurance, and Suez transit fees.
Insurance premiums for Red Sea transits have increased to 0.7-1.0% of a ship’s total value as of mid-February, up from less than 0.1% before December 2023.
Not only have our efforts to protect shipping not worked, but they have resulted in our allies forming a counter-coalition to avoid being under US command. US leadership in an area of immense national security interest, both the Red Sea route and the freedom of navigation, has been lost and will require much hard work to regain.
Major Shipping Lines Avoid Red Sea; Is It Just the Houthis or Should We Be Looking Deeper?
Red Sea Security Coalition Melts Down As Member Nations Refuse to Accept US Leadership
Once American hard power is used, it must emerge victorious. The failure to do so leads to instability and more warfare.
Much of Iran's resurgence and instability in the Middle East is directly attributable to Biden's horrendous leadership in closing out our Afghan misadventure. Now, he's about to end his misrule of America with another catastrophe that will echo for generations as a bookend to his Afghanistan failure. All in all, this is a fitting legacy for Joe Biden's life and political career.