Legitimate self-defense: joint statement of countries on strikes against Yemen’s Houthis (video)

Immediately after the operation against the Yemeni Houthis on Friday night, Joe Biden and Rishi Sunak made statements simultaneously. More than 10 countries issued a joint statement about the strikes.

US President Biden said, writes Air Force that this was a response to Houthi attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea, and that the United States and its allies would not hesitate to carry out further strikes if needed. The British Prime Minister noted that the strike against the Houthis was in self-defense:

“In recent months, the Houthi militia has carried out a number of dangerous and destabilizing attacks on merchant shipping in the Red Sea, posing a threat to British and other foreign ships. Therefore, we, together with the United States, with the non-military support of the Netherlands, Canada and Bahrain, have taken limited, necessary and proportionate actions in self-defense.”

He assured that British ships would continue to patrol the Red Sea as part of the Operation Prosperity Guardian mission, protecting merchant ships and called on the Houthis to stop attacks on them.

A coalition of countries formed to protect shipping in the Red Sea from Yemen’s Houthis issued a joint statement calling the strikes against the Houthis legitimate self-defense. It was signed by the heads of Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Canada. Statement made public White House:

“In response to the continued unlawful, dangerous and destabilizing attacks by the Houthis against shipping, including commercial vessels, traveling through the Red Sea, the US and UK forces, with the support of the Netherlands, Canada, Bahrain and Australia, launched joint strikes in accordance with the inalienable right to individual and collective self-defense, in accordance with the UN Charter, against a number of targets in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen. These precision strikes were intended to disrupt and weaken the Houthis’ ability to threaten global trade and the lives of international seafarers in one of the world’s most important waterways. More than two dozen Houthi attacks on “Commercial ships have posed an international challenge since mid-November. Today’s action demonstrated a shared commitment to freedom of navigation, international trade and protecting the lives of seafarers from unlawful and unjustified attacks.”

In a joint statement, the countries “called for an immediate end to illegal attacks and warned that attackers will be held accountable if they continue to threaten human lives, the global economy and the free movement of goods along the region’s critical waterways.” The countries noted that their goal remains to de-escalate tensions and restore stability in the Red Sea:

“Let our message be clear: we will not hesitate to defend life and the free flow of commerce on one of the world’s most important waterways in the face of ongoing threats.”

As our publication reported, aircraft and warships of the United States and Great Britain on the night of Friday, January 12 attacked military targets Houthi groups in Yemen. The British Typhoons that bombed the Houthis flew two and a half thousand kilometers away, from a base in Cyprus.

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