Britain has agreed to provide Saudi Arabia with defensive air-to-air refuelling support for a limited period following a request from Riyadh amid intensified Houthi attacks on the kingdom, Prime Minister Andy Burnham said.
Burnham said he approved the request on the advice of the defence and foreign secretaries before travelling to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, Reuters reported.
“We have received a request from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for military support,” Burnham told reporters, adding that he had agreed to provide defensive air-to-air refuelling.
Britain will deploy one Royal Air Force Voyager tanker aircraft in the coming days. Burnham said the assistance would be time-limited but kept under review.
The mission will support Saudi aircraft defending the kingdom against drone and missile attacks and will not provide refuelling for Saudi strikes against the Houthis, according to reports cited by Deutsche Welle.
Riyadh requested British support after the Houthis intensified attacks on Saudi Arabia amid a broader escalation in the region.
Saudi Arabia had sought a wider range of diplomatic and military support from Britain, including assistance in countering Houthi advances along Yemen’s Red Sea coast toward the Bab al-Mandab Strait and defending against attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure, Bloomberg reported last week, citing people familiar with the matter.
The Houthis have stepped up attacks on Saudi territory and oil infrastructure, while their advances along Yemen’s Red Sea coast have heightened concerns over security around Bab al-Mandab, a major maritime chokepoint connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden.
The escalation has increased concerns over Saudi oil exports at a time when disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz have already put pressure on regional energy flows.
Saudi Arabia increased its use of the East-West pipeline after disruptions around Hormuz reduced flows through the waterway, according to the BBC. The pipeline allows Saudi crude to be transported from the Gulf coast to the Red Sea, providing an alternative export route that avoids Hormuz.
The East-West pipeline was subsequently forced to shut after a drone attack, while Houthi drone and missile attacks also temporarily disrupted operations at several Saudi oil facilities, the BBC reported.
The pressure has increased the strategic importance of Red Sea shipping routes. Bab al-Mandab, at the southern entrance to the Red Sea, was a transit point for about 5% of global oil supplies before the latest regional conflict, according to the BBC.
The Houthis have also declared a blockade on Saudi shipping in Bab al-Mandab and the Red Sea, further raising concerns over the security of Saudi energy exports.
Burnham said Britain was acting to protect its interests and those of the wider region, citing the risk of further disruption and the need to keep oil routes open.
“We need to keep those pathways open,” he said.
Britain and Saudi Arabia have longstanding defence ties. Earlier this year, Britain deployed its Sky Sabre air defence system to Saudi Arabia to help protect the kingdom from Iranian missile attacks during the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran.
The new Voyager mission will operate alongside that deployment, adding air-to-air refuelling support for Saudi aircraft engaged in defensive operations.
Burnham said the arrangement would remain under review, while Britain was also supporting efforts to keep the Strait of Hormuz open. (Reuters; BBC; File Photo: UK’s Royal Air Force (RAF) Voyager © RAF)
