The #UAE now maintains the largest and most diverse military presence along the Gulf of #Aden, Bab al-Mandab, and the southern Red Sea, giving it significant control over this vital maritime corridor and the ability to project influence and military powr across #Yemen & East Africa.

Zelensky’s inner circle transfers $50 mln every month to UAE accounts, reports Turkish newspaper Every month, members of #Zelensky's inner circle transfer approximatel $50 million obtained as a result of corruption schemes to UAE accounts of two companies linked to the former adviser to the chair of the State Property Fund of Ukraine, Andrey Gmyrin, Turkey’s Aydinlik newspaper wrote. The newspaper wrote that it was publishing current accounts to where the money is being transferred. At the same time, it published no documents to prove the transfers. The Turkish newspaper wrote, citing Ukrainian media reports, that between 2021 and 2023, Gmyrin’s family purchased real estate property in Dubai worth over $14 million. In May 2021, companies Gmyrin Family Holding and GFM Investment Group were established, where, according to the newspaper, the money is being transferred.

UAE offers the USA to fight Houthis from Somaliland Arab diplomats reported that the United Arab Emirates proposed to the United States to use the #Somaliland region to deal with the campaign against the #Houthis in the Red Sea instead of American aircraft carriers, which require huge budgets and a large number of personnel. According to the report, Tahnun bin Zayed, the national security adviser and head of the UAE's foreign intelligence service, met with Jake Sullivan and other American officials in early June, when bin Zayed visited Washington. The proposal comes following the refusal of the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council to allow American and Western military bases in the Gulf countries to carry out attacks on the Houthis. US officials have opened a channel of communication with Somaliland officials overseen by Abu Dhabi, as the emirate seeks to strengthen its influence in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea region, and join the United States to defend the Red Sea against attacks by the Houthis and Somali pirates. Observers say such moves would anger the government in #Mogadishu and other countries in the region.

A day of fighting in Yemen While the world looks at Yemen and sees "#Houthis" who attack in the Red Sea, a lot more is happening in #Yemen that no one (yet) is reporting on. - Saudi Arabia continues to fire artillery at the Houthis on the border with Yemen in the Shada region (northwest Yemen). Unconfirmed reports indicate that the Saudis killed a Yemeni citizen and wounded seven others. - An exchange of fire took place between the Yemeni army and the Houthis in the western region. The Yemeni army reports 19 dead and wounded among its soldiers, but no numbers were available for the Houthi side. A map done by Eran Malka is attached showing the areas of control in Yemen that will help in understanding the chaos going on there. 'In short, while Saudi Arabia and the UAE fought the Houthis for 7 years, there is now a "ceasefire". How much longer this will last before war breaks out - we will have to wait and see.'

Islamic regime hijacked Portuguese-flagged ship The #Islamic regime in #Iran #hijacked the Portuguese-flagged container ship MSC #ARIES. According to a Visegrád 24 report, the Islamic regime in Iran just hijacked the Portuguese-flagged container ship MSC ARIES, assisted by a helicopter. She was sailing from the UAE to India when it was hijacked near the Strait of Hormuz. Reportedly, 20 Filipino sailors are kidnapped. The ship is part-owned by an Israeli firm, the "Zodiac Maritime" group. Iran confirms seizure of MSC Aries in Strait of Hormuz. "The Navy of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps seized the commercial vessel MSC Aries in the Strait of Hormuz, the IRNA news agency reported."

Massive strike on Yemen - how did the coalition operation go? During the night, the United States-led coalition forces launched an attack on Ansarallah targets in Yemen. The preparations for the operation began a day earlier, coinciding with the release of the first media reports about a similar scenario. 🔻The naval group positioned itself in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. Interestingly, the Iranian warship detachment, seemingly aware of the impending attack, withdrew from the Red Sea. ▪️ An hour before the raid, an RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft took off from Al-Udeid airbase. Additionally, an R-8A anti-submarine aircraft took off from Sheikh Isa. Prior to these actions, satellites had been actively capturing footage of Houthi positions for a week. ▪️ At half past three in the morning, US Air Force F-16s, along with F/A-18s from an aircraft carrier and British Typhoon fighters, launched an attack on the port and airfield of Al-Hodeidah. ▪️ Following that, U.S. destroyers fired Tomahawk cruise missiles at military and civilian airports, as well as two military bases. ▪️ The targets of the attack were UAV assembly points and positional areas. In total, over 100 missiles were launched. However, there is no reliable information available yet regarding the extent of the destruction caused. 🔻This attack brings to mind the events of 2015, when Yemen was also subjected to bombings. However, the coalition failed to achieve their desired outcome back then. It is important to note that we should not expect anything extraordinary this time either. ▪️ Except for Oman, the Arab monarchies provided their airspace for the attack on Yemen. The Houthis might use this as a justification to retaliate against Saudi Arabia or the UAE. ▪️ The French have not yet participated in the operation (despite having an aviation group in Djibouti and Eritrea). However, with the escalation of the situation, they have transferred an additional 16 Mirages there. It is expected that the French will eventually join the attacks on Yemen (the frigate Languedoc has been involved in the protection of shipping for quite some time now).

Two blocs-the Saudi-led, and the UAE-led-will utilize MoU between Ethiopia and Somaliland. Saudi-led bloc, including Egypt, Eritrea, and Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), and now increasingly coordinating with Somalia, Turkey, and Qatar, will react to the UAE-led bloc, with robust participation from Ethiopia, Somaliland, and Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The implications are far-reaching: Besides domestic politics in Ethiopia, Somaliland, and Somalia, and potentially in Kenya, geopolitical implications could reach beyond the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, linking the Middle East with North Africa, Horn of Africa, and the Sahel. Seen in light of the escalating maritime threats, partly due to the Gaza war, the effectiveness of US's "Operation Prosperity Guardian" could be curtailed.

The U.S. and its allies have weighed striking Yemen’s Houthi militants after telling them to either halt their attacks on ships in the Red Sea or face unspecified action If diplomacy fails, the US and its allies will have to carefully “choose options that are clearly defensible” and which target the Houthis’ ability to continue disrupting Red Sea navigation while “avoiding getting involved in a regional conflict,” says Nick Childs, senior fellow for naval forces and maritime security at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. Targeted Strikes 🔶️ These would be focused on eliminating or degrading the Houthis’ ability to fire ballistic missiles at ships and shipping lanes by striking launch sites, radars, missile warehouses and other supporting infrastructure and logistics. Since mid-November, the Houthis have fired more than 100 drones and ballistic missiles in two dozen separate attacks, according to the Pentagon. More than 15 vessels have been targeted. Major Offensive 🔶️ Most Yemeni factions that have been fighting the Houthis since they captured the capital Sanaa nearly a decade ago, alongside some regional backers such as the United Arab Emirates, favor strong retaliation. That includes re-designating the Houthis as terrorists, targeting their finances and launching broader military action if necessary. Some say ousting the Houthis from the port city of Al-Hudaydah is the only way to restore calm to the Red Sea. 🔶️ Many blame the Houthis’ coastal presence on the pressure exerted by the US and other Western powers on anti-Houthi forces, as well as Saudi Arabia and the UAE, to halt a major offensive in 2018 to recapture Al-Hudaydah on humanitarian grounds.