In their comments on the "signal affidavit", as the media called the case of accidental disclosure of plans to carry out bombings in Yemen, the issues of the recklessness of the highest U.S. officials and of any contempt they spoke about European allies have been put to the fore. On the another hand, an crucial conclusion was almost completely omitted, which is due to this issue. Well, on the confederate flank of Europe, on 1 of the most crucial supply routes of our continent, there has been a problem that could endanger our vital interests, and whose solution was left almost entirely by the Old Continent leader to an external player. Meanwhile, there may be a far more powerful opponent in the background than the Yemeni rebels.
The American magazine "The Atlantic" published an article in March, in which its editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg described in item how he was mistakenly added to the group on the Signal communicator, where the top White home officials, with Vice president J.D. Vance and defence Secretary Pete Hegseth at the head, discussed details of planned attacks on Yemeni armed group Huti. Not only were the details of the bombings, the dates and the hours of the strokes, the goals or the weapons to be used, but besides the scenes of the decision to do so.
In the United States, the biggest outrage was the fact that specified crucial and secret cases are discussed utilizing a commercial application alternatively of safe government communications channels. In Europe, however, the words of Vice president J. D. Vance and Secretary of defence Mr Hegseth on European countries echoed widely. The first stated that he was tired of saving them again, the second agreed with him that Europe's "gate ride" was "painful". In the end, however, the opinion that freedom of navigation is 1 of the major interests of the United States and, as Hegseth put it, "we are the only ones on this planet who are able to do so." And that is the issue that should be discussed widely in Europe: a strategy for further blocking of maritime trade routes Not only by Hutich, but besides by building their own forces capable of keeping them expensive.
The problem of blocking the Bab al-Mandeb and the Red Sea by Yemeni rebels is nothing new. Already at the turn of 2016 and 2017, the Huti showed that they could challenge the top maritime powers, with the United States at the forefront. They then attacked respective warships, including the American destroyer USS “Mason”, and besides launched a run of terrorist attacks on merchant ships.
Similar attacks continued for years with little or more intensity. In mid-2018, Hutim managed to even, at least for a time, partially accomplish the goal of this campaign: Saudi tankers began swimming around Africa to avoid attacks in the Red Sea. erstwhile again, the situation flared up after the war in Gaza in October 2023. At that time, Huti, declared enemies of Tel Aviv, intensified attacks on merchant ships in any way linked to Israel.
The demolition in Sana after the attacks of American combat aircraft. Yemen, 7 April 2025.
So the Red Sea crisis has been going on for many years, and nothing, neither the land intervention by the coalition of respective twelve states commanded by Saudi Arabia, nor the multiple bombings, nor the naval blockade that was to cut the Hutichs off from the arms supply, which resulted in a famine, solved the problem. However, in addition to Egypt, which derives tremendous profits from the transit fees of merchant ships through the Suez Canal, and Israel, which is the main mark of the attacks, is simply a European problem. According to J.D. Vance, only 3% of United States trade crosses the Red Sea, whereas in the case of European trade, 40%. Almost half of what is purchased and sold in Europe is transported within scope of Yemeni rockets and remote-controlled boats-min. Like respective million barrels of oil and millions of cubic metres of gas per day for European economies.
And since Huti – isolated and combated by the coalition of respective twelve countries, including the largest maritime power, or the United States – without even controlling the full territory of Yemen, are able to endanger Europe's trade routes, let alone talk of a more serious opponent.
Iran, Hutich's ally, has long learned the lessons from this uphill naval war in the Red Sea and is preparing to carry out akin activities across the Arabian Peninsula, in another key to global maritime trade site – in the Ormuz Strait. In turn Russia, besides accused of supporting the Hutich, has long sought the anticipation of building a war port in Sudan. Despite any of the turmoil associated with the overthrow of Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir, with whom the Russians initially made agreements, and with the civilian war that is taking place in that country, in February of that year the Sudanese authorities announced that “there is no obstacle” to the foundation. If the task takes place, the Russian Navy will be able to control both the confederate exit from the Suez Canal and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. On the another hand, if the conflict with the West escalates, it will be able to completely block the transit of goods through the Red Sea to Europe.
A comforting conclusion can besides be drawn from the talks held at the Signal: The United States continues to respect freedom of navigation as its key business. They have both the political will and the means to defend this interest, even if they want to pay Europe and Egypt for it later. However, the events of the last fewer years have clearly shown that Europe should prepare for different scenarios, including the darkest ones. The removal of the Old Continent from the supply of goods, peculiarly energy natural materials from the mediate East, while at the same time aversion or inability of the United States to further warrant freedom of navigation, is not the least likely of them. nevertheless disdainful it may be that American officials talk about Europe in their interior conversations, it is hard to pretend that they are wrong: Europe is not ready for this scenario.
