Western Countries Demand Iran to Pressure the Houthis... Europe Prepares for Naval Mission

A ship sails in the Arabian Sea near Bab al-Mandab, off Aden, Yemen, in December. (EPA)
A ship sails in the Arabian Sea near Bab al-Mandab, off Aden, Yemen, in December. (EPA)
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Western Countries Demand Iran to Pressure the Houthis... Europe Prepares for Naval Mission

A ship sails in the Arabian Sea near Bab al-Mandab, off Aden, Yemen, in December. (EPA)
A ship sails in the Arabian Sea near Bab al-Mandab, off Aden, Yemen, in December. (EPA)

European countries are discussing the details of a naval mission to protect ships in the Red Sea from Houthi attacks, while diplomatic efforts continue to try to reduce the escalation and prevent the expansion of the conflict in the region.
The European Union is seeking to persuade Iran to use its “influence” with the Houthis to urge them to stop their attacks on ships in the Red Sea, which had prompted the United States and Britain to launch limited strikes on the group in Yemen.
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron met with his Iranian counterpart, Amir Hussein Abdollahian, on the sidelines of the Davos meetings on Wednesday, according to a British Foreign Office statement.
Cameron called on Iran to “use its influence with the Houthis to prevent further threats” in the Red Sea, describing their attacks as “illegal and unacceptable.”
Wednesday witnessed another European-Iranian meeting, which brought together Enrique Mora, the European Union’s Deputy Commissioner for Foreign Policy and the EU representative in the nuclear negotiations with Iran, with Ali Bagheri Kani, the Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister and Iran’s representative in the nuclear file. Informed diplomatic sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the meeting focused on persuading Iran to ask the Houthis to stop their attacks on ships. Although the sources described the meeting as “good,” they pointed to diverging Western and Iranian views.
The sources added that Bagheri Kani did not make any commitment to seek to influence the Houthis, but on the other hand, they indicated that Mora also refrained from exerting pressure by threatening additional sanctions on Iran if it did not contribute to reducing the escalation in the region.
While European diplomatic efforts continue with the aim to stop the escalation with Iran, EU countries are preparing to join the British-American naval mission to protect ships in the Red Sea. Two days ago, EU ambassadors approved an initial plan to form a naval mission to protect vessels from Houthi attacks. The EU foreign ministers are expected to discuss the plan on Monday and give final approval to it.
European countries will work to determine the legal frameworks to expand this maritime mission, and define its work precisely. Discussions are underway to deploy at least three European frigates, which will escort ships in the Red Sea and deter any attacks.
The Netherlands announced its readiness to participate in the mission by sending a frigate. The Dutch Minister of Defense said on Thursday that discussions were ongoing on the matter, adding that it was necessary to obtain authorization in Parliament.
Germany is also planning to send a frigate to participate in the naval mission, but it also needs Parliament’s approval.
The head of the Defense Committee in the German Parliament, Marie-Agnes Strack Zimmermann, said that Germany’s participation in the naval mission aims to protect commercial ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, adding that the Houthi attack on ships “is an attack on freedom of trade, and must be confronted.”

 

 

 

 



Biden Is Laying Low at the White House on Election Day

US President Joe Biden points a finger as he delivers remarks on the administration's continued drawdown efforts in Afghanistan in a speech from the East Room at the White House in Washington US, July 8, 2021. (Reuters)
US President Joe Biden points a finger as he delivers remarks on the administration's continued drawdown efforts in Afghanistan in a speech from the East Room at the White House in Washington US, July 8, 2021. (Reuters)
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Biden Is Laying Low at the White House on Election Day

US President Joe Biden points a finger as he delivers remarks on the administration's continued drawdown efforts in Afghanistan in a speech from the East Room at the White House in Washington US, July 8, 2021. (Reuters)
US President Joe Biden points a finger as he delivers remarks on the administration's continued drawdown efforts in Afghanistan in a speech from the East Room at the White House in Washington US, July 8, 2021. (Reuters)

US President Joe Biden has no public appearances on his schedule and his press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, won’t be holding her typical daily briefing on Tuesday.

Biden made his final campaign appearance on Saturday when he delivered a speech to laborers on behalf of the Harris-Walz campaign in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

He hasn’t taken a question from reporters since gaggling at an event in Baltimore last Tuesday.

Later that same day, Biden created an uproar in remarks to Latino activists when he responded to racist comments at a Trump rally made by the comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, who referred to the US island territory of Puerto Rico as a “floating island of garbage.”

Biden, according to a transcript prepared by the official White House stenographers, told the Latino group on a Tuesday evening video call, “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters — his — his demonization of Latinos is unconscionable, and it’s un-American.”

The dizzying presidential contest between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris hurtled toward an uncertain finish on Tuesday as millions of Americans headed to the polls to choose between two sharply different visions for the country.

A race churned by unprecedented events – two assassination attempts against Trump, Biden's surprise withdrawal and Harris' rapid rise – remained neck and neck as Election Day dawned, even after billions of dollars in spending and months of frenetic campaigning.