The US is sending superior fighter plane and a Navy destroyer to the United Arab Emirates in response to a string of missile and drone assaults on the Gulf nation by Yemeni rebels backed by Iran.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin authorised the deployment of the guided missile destroyer USS Cole and fifth-generation fighter jets following requests for assist by prime Emirati officers in latest weeks.
The announcement got here after Austin spoke on the cellphone with Crown Prince Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan yesterday.
The Emirates have been focused 3 times by ballistic missile and drone assaults claimed by Yemen’s Houthi rebels since Jan. 17. The primary assault killed three individuals close to Abu Dhabi, whereas the latter two had been efficiently parried by Emirati and US missile defenses.
US officers have stated Al Dhafra Airbase, which homes some 2,000 American troops and an Air Pressure expeditionary wing, is believed to have been focused within the latter two assaults. On each events, the incoming missiles prompted US personnel to hunt shelter and Patriot air protection batteries to fireside.
The Houthis have vowed to proceed concentrating on the UAE, which together with Saudi Arabia backs Yemeni pro-government forces who’ve made latest battlefield positive aspects towards the rebels.
The USS Cole will conduct joint workouts with the Emirati Navy earlier than making a port name in Abu Dhabi, Pentagon press secretary John Kirby confirmed right now. In the meantime, US fighter plane will “help the UAE towards the present menace,” the Protection Division stated in a statement launched final night time.
Whereas the Pentagon isn’t ruling out further deployments, the transfer seems to sign a extra focused US response to missile and drone assaults by Iran-backed teams within the area lately.
Kirby informed to reporters right now that the transfer is not going to have an effect on the closest plane provider strike group, the USS Harry S. Truman, which is working beneath NATO command for the primary time within the Mediterranean amid tensions with Russia.
The deployment additionally poses a possible check for the Biden administration, which has dedicated to finish US assist for offensive strikes in Yemen’s civil struggle.
Press secretary Kirby declined to specify whether or not American fighter pilots headed to the UAE might tasked with concentrating on Houthi projectiles already within the air or launch sites on the bottom inside Yemen.
“I’m actually not going to get into particular ROE [rules of engagement] or operations,” Kirby informed reporters throughout a briefing right now.
“It’s not simply the Emiratis. It’s our individuals there at Al Dhafra, too, so we’re going to do what we have to do to guard our troops and our companions,” he stated.
The US already offers early-warning intelligence on Houthi missile launches to the Emiratis and to Saudi Arabia.
