US holds back as Houthis tighten grip on Yemen’s Red Sea coast

The Trump administration has no current plans for direct military action against Yemen’s Houthi forces. 

However, it is providing Saudi Arabia with intelligence and targeting support as fighting intensifies along Yemen’s Red Sea coast.

The assessment could change if threats to Red Sea shipping worsen. 

US Central Command chief Admiral Brad Cooper visited Saudi Arabia, while Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman held two calls with President Trump and pressed Washington for greater military involvement, according to US officials.

The developments come as Houthi forces have made rapid gains in western Yemen, seizing the strategic port city of Mokha and Perim Island in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, bringing the group closer to effective control of the crucial maritime chokepoint.

Saudi Arabia has continued supporting Yemen, while Washington has so far limited its involvement to intelligence and technical assistance. Saudi forces have also carried out airstrikes against Houthi positions as government forces attempt to halt the advance. 

The strategic stakes are high because Bab al-Mandeb links the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and provides a major route for trade and energy shipments between Asia and Europe. 

Control of the area could give the Houthis greater leverage over international shipping and further threaten Saudi oil exports.