MBS asked Trump for help against Houthis; US rejected military action

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Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman sought assistance from U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday to help fight Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis, two sources familiar with the matter said on Friday, as the Houthis stepped up their threat to the Red Sea.

Trump held at least two phone conversations with the Saudi leader on Thursday, sources said. In the end, Washington told Riyadh that it was not willing to take direct military action for now but would help with intelligence sharing and targeting, the two sources said.

The White House did not address a Reuters question on any phone calls between the two leaders, but a senior administration official speaking on the condition of anonymity said Washington was in continuous dialogue with Saudi Arabia and the Yemeni government.

“The United States is focused on protecting our core national security interests — such as ensuring freedom of navigation in the Red Sea — while empowering our regional partners to take the lead in managing and resolving regional security challenges,” the official said.

The Saudi government media office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the phone calls and conversations between the two leaders.

Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command, traveled to Saudi Arabia on Thursday for talks, two sources said.

News of the request to Trump was first reported by Axios.

SAUDI APPEAL MARKS CHANGE OF APPROACH

The U.S. war with Iran has entered its seventh month with no immediate end in sight. The war has driven up prices of global oil and U.S. gasoline, sending Trump’s approval ratings to a record low before the November midterm elections.

Houthi control of the Red Sea’s Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which is on the opposite side of the Arabian Peninsula from the Strait of Hormuz, could give their backer Iran a critical advantage in its war with the U.S., reducing supplies through a second major transit corridor and sending oil prices surging.

Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, has relied on the Red Sea route since the Iran conflict effectively closed Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil used to flow.

The escalation dates back to early July, when the Houthis ⁠said ​their forces confronted Saudi “warplanes” that were attempting ​to prevent an Iranian civilian aircraft from landing at Sanaa International Airport.

But back then, Saudi Arabia told the United States that it could fight the Houthis on its own and emphasized to Washington that the war should not escalate. Saudi officials urged their U.S. counterparts to increase economic pressure on Iran.

The U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. ​28, and Iran responded with its own strikes on ​Israel and ⁠Gulf states that host U.S. bases. U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed thousands and displaced millions.