Riyadh disappointed by lack of assistance from Western allies in fight against the Houthis
Saudi Arabia, which leads the Arab coalition, is unhappy with insufficient Western assistance in the fight against the Ansar Allah movement (the Houthis) in Yemen, Bloomberg writes.
"Riyadh is disappointed by the limited assistance from its Western allies," sources told the agency.
Thus, although the United Kingdom provided its refueling tanker, Saudi Arabia's requests for additional defensive support in recent weeks have not yet been approved, Bloomberg notes.
France, for its part, stated that it would send defensive military equipment to Yanbu, a Saudi port on the Red Sea.
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said three weeks ago that London would assist Riyadh with aerial refueling of aircraft in response to Saudi Arabia's request for military support.
On October 4, Yemen's internationally recognized government launched a counteroffensive operation against the Houthis, who in the fall seized Yemen's coastline along the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
On Friday it was reported that the Saudi-led coalition forces may have succeeded in completely driving the Houthis out of areas near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The Houthis deny this information. Also last week there were reports of retaliatory Houthi attacks on civilian infrastructure facilities in the Saudi capital — King Khalid International Airport.
Saudi Arabia leads the Arab coalition providing military support to Yemen's government forces and carries out airstrikes on Houthi positions. Yemen is of enormous strategic importance to the kingdom, since millions of barrels of Saudi oil are transported through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
