US Defense Secretary: Washington will not support military operations in Yemen
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed in his phone call to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al-Jeed that Washington has made clear its position that it will not support the Saudi-led offensive operations in Yemen.
“The call was definitely good, and it was like reestablishing activities with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is also the defense minister,” Austin said during a press conference at the Pentagon.
He added, “As you know, President Biden was clear that we will not support the offensive operations carried out by Saudi Arabia in Yemen, and they heard that message clearly.”
In one of its first foreign policy moves, the Biden administration stopped its support for the military operations carried out by the Saudi-Emirati coalition in Yemen, and said it would work to end the war and the humanitarian crisis it left behind, which is described as the worst in the world.
The official Saudi Press Agency said: “The Crown Prince reviewed with the US Secretary of Defense aspects of the bilateral relations between the two countries and ways to enhance them, especially in the field of defense cooperation, as well as discussing developments in regional events.”
The Agency added that Austin “reaffirmed the importance of the defense strategic partnership between the two countries, as well as his country’s condemnation of the Houthi attacks on the Kingdom, and affirmed the commitment of the United States to help the Kingdom to defend itself.”
Yemen has been suffering an ongoing war between the pro-government forces and the Houthi militia, which control governorates, including the capital, Sanaa (north), since September 2014.
