EU strengthens Red Sea mission as Houthis may shut Bab el-Mandeb strait

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas visited Djibouti on July 17 and signed a new security agreement to reinforce Europe's naval presence in the Red Sea. Reports indicate that Tehran has asked the Houthis to shut the Bab el-Mandeb strait if the US strikes Iranian infrastructure. Closing the strait would threaten a second critical global shipping chokepoint after the Suez Canal.