Red Sea, this is how the Houthis are shaking up international sea transport
The blockade of the Red Sea by Houthi rebels is a reaction to Israel's war in Gaza. The in-depth analysis by Riccardo Pennisi, geopolitical analyst
The blockade of the Red Sea – one of the most unexpected consequences of the Gaza war – reveals the stratified composition of contemporary conflicts: never reducible to a single dimension, direction, destination. Here are seven things to know.
1 – THE IMPACT ON INTERNATIONAL TRADE
10% of the world's goods pass through the Suez Canal. The passage had already been blocked two years ago – remember? – when a vessel, the Taiwanese Ever Given, ran aground diagonally, preventing navigation. What happens between Suez and Bab-el-Mandeb always affects international trade and the prices of goods.
2 – MSC, MAERSK AND MORE SUSPEND THEIR SHIPPING
The four large Western transport operators (MSC, Switzerland; CMA CGM, France; Maersk, Denmark; Hapag Lloyd, Germany) yesterday decided to suspend the passage of their container ships from the Suez|Bab-el-Mandeb route, due to of the continuous attacks conducted by drones launched by the Houthi militias , engaged in the war in Yemen. Among the top 5 global players in this field, only the Chinese Cosco will continue to navigate in those waters.
3- THE WAR IN YEMEN
For nine years now, there has been a civil war in Yemen which sees the Houthi component, supported by Iran and Hezbollah, which controls the capital Sana'a, opposing factions supported by Saudi Arabia and the Emirates. Islamist groups linked to Al-Qaida and ISIS have also crept in between the two.
4 – AN UNKNOWN WAR IN EUROPE
There is very little talk, very little, about this war, probably precisely because of the atrocities committed without sparing on both sides. A rather uncomfortable fact to digest from a diplomatic and political point of view in a Europe that depends decisively on Saudi oil and Emirati gas, as well as on their financial operations in the Old Continent, and where attempts have been made for years to relax relations with Iran.
5 – THE HOUTHI COUNTER-WAR IN THE RED SEA
The Israeli invasion of Gaza pushed the Houthis to participate in the conflict in an anti-Western way. One of the strategic reasons for Hamas's attack on Israel was to prevent agreements between the Jewish state and the Saudi-Emiratis, who are the sworn enemies of the pro-Iranian Houthis. The contrast between Iran and Saudi Arabia is a necessary key to understanding all the current conflicts in the Middle East.
6- THE DRONES
The US-UK anti-aircraft installed on military boats cruising in the area shot down several drones (15 on Saturday alone) launched from Yemen, but some hit the target. The Houthis ensure that they only target ships headed towards Israel, but they also hit some destined for Saudi Arabia, and an oil tanker.
7 – HOW MUCH DOES THE SUEZ CANAL MATTER
About fifty boats pass through Suez a day and Egypt earns around 8.6 billion euros a year. Despite the offer of discounts by the Canal Authorities (up to 20%), goods destined from Asia to Europe will now pass through the Cape of Good Hope (circumnavigating Africa). Deviation will cause increased costs and delays of 7-10 days in deliveries of goods.
(Excerpt from Riccardo Pennisi's LinkedIn profile )
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/smartcity/houthi-mar-rosso/ on Mon, 18 Dec 2023 13:26:15 +0000.