Houthi militants who continue to attack merchant ships in the Red Sea are doing China "a big favor" by challenging American supremacy, a professor at Beijing's top military academy said this week.
The Yemen-based Shiite Muslim force opened a new maritime front late last month when it vowed to block seaborne supplies to Israel in solidarity with Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip.
Its drone and missile attacks in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, south of the Red Sea corridor, have targeted Israeli container ships but also European-flagged vessels.
"It means the Houthis have turned their original blockade of Israel into a blockade against the West," Xiao Yunhua, a professor at the People's Liberation Army National Defense University said on Monday in comments posted to Douyin, TikTok's Chinese cousin.
From Beijing's perspective, the Houthi's threat to the security of international shipping lanes represents an opportunity to double down on China's rail links from Asia to Europe, according to Xiao.
"It is precisely our international strategy to sever U.S. hegemony, undermine American sea power and promote global multipolarity," he told his 500,000 followers.
"In a way, the Houthis have done us, China, a big favor," Xiao said.
The PLA National Defense University is run by the leadership of the Central Military Commission, chaired by Communist Party chief Xi Jinping. It is the country's highest military education institution.
Xiao's video received 16,000 likes—the most popular on his account by far—and more than 1,000 comments backing his analysis.
The 18-mile-wide Bab el-Mandeb Strait leads to the Suez Canal, through which billions of dollars of trade flows each year.
Houthi-launched anti-ship ballistic missiles, many of which have been intercepted by U.S. and allied warships, have spooked shipping companies and rerouted cargo ships around the Cape of Good Hope, causing delays and increasing fuel costs.
The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden has been reluctant to sanction a direct military response against the Houthis, who are backed by Iran. The Islamic republic is suspected of arming both Hamas and Hezbollah, in addition to Houthi forces.
Earlier this week, the United States stood up a 10-nation coalition under Operation Prosperity Guardian, which seeks to counter the Houthi activity in critical sea lanes.
The Houthi movement on Wednesday declared war on the U.S.-led naval task force, saying it was ready to meet any attack.
Beijing has not joined the operation, but its ships are just as vulnerable to Houthi missiles, Washington says.
"They harm the United States; they harm China. They harm the interests of every country," U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Tuesday.
In a subtle rebuke of Beijing, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his Chinese counterpart in a recent call that "all nations" had an obligation to uphold maritime security.
Blinken "made very clear that if China could use its relationships in the region to urge countries to maintain calm and maintain stability, we thought that would be a productive step," Miller said.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin on Thursday did not directly answer a question about Beijing's potential contribution to stabilizing the situation in the Red Sea.
"Safeguarding the security and stability of the region serves the common interest of the international community. China stands for protecting the safety of international sea lanes and against causing disturbance to civilian ships," he said.
"We believe relevant parties, especially major countries with influence, need to play a constructive and responsible role in keeping the shipping lanes safe in the Red Sea," Wang said.
For 15 years, the Chinese navy has been dispatching a naval task force to escort commercial vessels off the Horn of Africa as part of its counter-piracy contributions in the region. Its latest rotation of warships arrived in October, China's Defense Ministry said.
The Pentagon said in November that the Chinese naval vessels ignored a distress call from a cargo ship that had been forcefully boarded by Somali pirates, and which was later targeted by Houthi missiles.
China's Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to Newsweek's written request for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
John Feng is Newsweek's contributing editor for Asia based in Taichung, Taiwan. His focus is on East Asian politics. He ... Read more
