Alwaght- While the seventh year of war on Yemen is reaching its end, the Saudi-led Arab coalition is stepping up its bombardment campaign, closing the door to prospects of end of the conflict in the near future. Meanwhile, as the international efforts to settle the crisis have run into an impasse, the slogans Biden made during his election campaign about the need for immediate end of war and end of support to the Arab aggression are losing their sense, with Washington sending out signals it is itself increasing its military involvement in Yemen in favor of the alliance forces.
In mid-January, intelligence data found their way to media about the US forces' presence on Ma'rib province front and now there are reports the US administration plans returning Yemen's Ansarullah Movement, a key revolutionary force in control of the capital Sana'a and much of the north, to Trump-era terror blacklist– a step legitimizing the inhumane Saudi blockade on Yemen.
On the other hand, Reuters reported on Monday that a squadron of US F-22 fighters arrived at Abu Dhabi's Al-Dhafra Air Base on Saturday. The US air force claims that the deployment of stealth fighter jets follows coordination between US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
This measure is seen by observers a sign of the full support of Washington to Abu Dhabi, which has been the target of Ansarullah's retaliatory missile attacks in recent weeks.
But what is the goal behind the deployment of the advanced aircraft to the UAE? Would they turn the tide in the war equations?
UAE's bitter admission and defeat of censorship policy
The announcement of the deployment of advanced US warplanes to the UAE in protection of the country initially contains a symbolic message that Ansarullah missile and drone strikes against Emirati sites have fully achieved their main goal of endangering the security of the enemy and dealing painful blows to its economy. By asking the US and also Israeli regime for help, the UAE has practically admitted its inability to protect itself despite constant bragging about capability to protect its security.
Since the start of Ansarullah drone and missile strikes against the country's important economic and strategic centers, the UAE has made great efforts to prevent the leakage of destruction scale and the cost of attacks by following a policy of strict media censorship.
Now the news of the arrival of advanced US military aircraft in the UAE at the request of Abu Dhabi leaders not only do not disappoint the Yemenis about continuing attacks at the UAE's strategic depth but also on the contrary embolden them to step up their strikes until the opposite side accepts defeat and retreats from Yemen.
Lose-lose White House game
In recent months, the Biden government's policy on the Yemeni war has been widely criticized, mainly for its inability to realize election slogans of quickly ending the war and forcing Riyadh to come to the negotiating table with Sana'a. The humanitarian crisis in Yemen is intensifying day by day as coalition attacks and the siege continue, and this, along with arms sales to Saudi Arabia, which are certainly used in the Yemeni war, severely question honesty of Biden administration about pursuing human rights in its foreign policy as the president promised during his campaign-time speeches.
This situation considered, military equipment and manpower dispatch to the UAE, whether for involvement in the war or for symbolic support, is a lose-lose game for White House regional policies. Here us why:
Firstly, the US involvement in the war is not new, and in fact, it is too naive to assume that the Saudi rulers were able to continue the war without reliance on Western military, logistics, and intelligence support. Dragging the war into Saudi depth and Riyadh's incapability to counter Yemeni ground assaults on its soil and also spending heavily on foreign mercenaries to buy security all signal the coalition's weakness. The American military and diplomatic backing to the alliance all epitomize Washington's involvement in the war and stand as factors for its prolongation.
So far, despite full-scale and resolute Western support, the Arab coalition has made no mentionable gains from its military presence in Yemen, and it is the Yemenis that enhanced their military capabilities and tipped the scales in their favor with self-reliance and a strong resolve. Having this in mind, even further military help makes no serious difference in the war equations and shadow of threat remains on Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Secondly, if the Americans intend to send symbolic messages and signals of firm alliance, this would produce no tangible achievements for the Emiratis and only increases Yemeni motivation to maintain attacks on the UAE depth. Sending military assistance shows how disloyal Biden is to his own promises of cutting support to the Arab aggression as part of a prelude to end the devastating war, destroys Washington's seemingly mediatory efforts to speed up moving toward a political solution, and increases the American responsibility for the humanitarian crisis and critical human rights conditions in Yemen.
