Yemen’s deterrence strategy: How has it proven successful in confronting American arrogance?
SANAA, Jan. 09 (YPA) – American bullying, through a series of aggressive practices targeting sovereign states, has revealed the fragility of the international system and the inability of international laws and institutions to protect states from American arrogance.
From the aggression against Venezuela and the kidnapping of its president, Nicolas Maduro, and his wife, to the seizure of oil tankers carrying Venezuelan oil, and the US president’s explicit talk about seizing the wealth of this country, even going so far as to threaten the use of military force to take over Greenland, reveals a picture of a powerless international system in which sovereignty is violated without deterrence or accountability.
Enshrining the logic of power
Less than a week after the United States’ aggression against Venezuela and the kidnapping of its legitimate president, Maduro, and his wife, and their transfer to the United States for trial, the US military announced yesterday, Wednesday, its seizure of two oil tankers carrying Venezuelan oil in the North Atlantic, one of which was flying the Russian flag, in a dangerous precedent of international maritime piracy.
Participation was not limited to Washington alone, as the British Ministry of Defense announced its support for the operation, with the participation of aircraft belonging to the British Royal Air Force, reflecting a Western alignment to enshrine the logic of force instead of respecting international law.
This comes in parallel with statements by US President Donald Trump, in which he revealed through his “Truth Social” platform Washington’s intention to seize 50 million barrels of Venezuelan oil, to be transported to US ports, in a public admission of plundering the wealth of countries under the cover of sanctions.
One day earlier, on January 5, the White House revealed that President Trump was considering a number of ideas for acquiring Greenland, a self-governing territory belonging to the Kingdom of Denmark, confirming that resorting to the military option “remains on the table.”
White House spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt said Trump considers the acquisition of Greenland a priority for U.S. national security, allegedly to “deter adversaries in the Arctic region.”
Despite US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s attempt to downplay the statements by asserting that Washington seeks to “buy” the island and not invade it militarily, the mere threat of using force against a sovereign state reflects a clear disregard for the principle of sovereignty that is supposed to govern international relations.
These successive events reveal that the existing international system is no longer a formal framework, which the United States disrupts whenever it conflicts with its interests, while the institutions of the international community stand helpless to deter aggression or protect the targeted countries.
A crisis-ridden international reality
This American arrogance comes in the context of a troubled international reality, in which no global power seems truly prepared to stand up to the United States or curb its aggressive practices. Despite the escalation of American violations of international law and the repeated attacks on the sovereignty of states, the major powers, foremost among them China and Russia, are content with issuing statements of condemnation and diplomatic declarations, without translating this into practical action capable of deterring Washington or imposing a political or legal cost on its transgressions.
This situation reflects a state of helplessness or undeclared collusion within the international system, where the balance of power has become skewed in favor of the United States, which is exploiting this vacuum to impose its policies by force and expand its sphere of influence at the expense of independent peoples and states, without fear of accountability or punishment.
Given these facts, indicators suggest that US President Donald Trump is continuing to push the United States towards more political and military arrogance, relying on the absence of international deterrence, and betting on the silence of the international community and the preoccupation of major powers with their own calculations, which portends a more dangerous phase in international relations, the title of which is the consecration of the law of force and the destruction of what remains of the rules of the international order.
Building military capabilities is the true bet of nations
In the face of this escalating American trend, and in light of the current international crisis in which global powers seem unable to stand up to American arrogance or curb its aggressive policies, another bet imposed by the facts emerges, which is the reliance of peoples – especially those targeted by Washington – on their own capabilities, foremost among them building and developing elements of defensive power that enable them to protect their sovereignty and impose real deterrent equations.
The experiences of recent years indicate that having the will and ability, and not being dependent on the international system, has been a decisive factor in confronting external pressures and attacks.
In this context, the Yemeni model stands out, which relied on itself to build its military capabilities, enabling it to withstand foreign interventions and impose a new field reality during the last war, which witnessed direct American intervention in support of “Israel” against the backdrop of the Yemeni intervention to support Gaza.
According to the indicators, this reality contributed to confusing the American calculations, and prompted the US administration, including President Donald Trump, to move towards the path of de-escalation through the mediation of the Sultanate of Oman with Sanaa, in a step that reflected the failure of the force option to achieve its goals, and reinforced the conviction that peoples who are able to possess the elements of their power can impose new equations, even in the face of the major powers, foremost among them the United States, the leader of bullying in the world.
YPA