Bloomberg named the reasons for China’s refusal to fight the Houthis – Kommersant

Chinese authorities are refraining from getting involved in the fight against the Houthis despite risks to trade from attacks on ships in the Red Sea, reports Bloomberg. As the agency notes, while the US and UK strike the positions of Yemeni rebels, China is “again happy to remain on the sidelines.”

Bloomberg clarifies that China imports about half of its crude oil from the Middle East and exports more to the European Union than to the United States. The Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (which measures spot rates from Shanghai to the world’s largest ports) rose last week to its highest level since September 2022, according to Bloomberg Intelligence, signaling rising costs associated with the potential need to reroute ships around Africa.

Despite this, the agency argues, for Chinese President Xi Jinping, “the costs are not yet great enough to outweigh the risks of intervention and the benefits of inaction.” “He can sit back and allow the US and its allies to fight the Houthis, stoking anti-American sentiment in parts of the Middle East, posing as a neutral arbiter and keeping most of his forces ready to fight in Taiwan or the South China Sea.” – the publication says.

In recent weeks, more Middle Eastern countries have called on China to “use its regional influence to prevent a larger war,” Bloomberg sources said. But Chinese officials have “very little ability to project power in the Gulf” and are reluctant to “get involved in a larger conflict,” said William Figueroa, an associate professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. In his opinion, China’s condemnation of the Houthis “could upset their allies in Tehran and will lead nowhere.”

However, Xiao Yunhua, a professor at the People’s Liberation Army National Defense University of China, believes that “the Houthis have unintentionally done China a great favor.” He is confident that shipping disruptions will encourage more traders to use rail networks, bolstering Mr Xi’s Belt and Road initiative to build infrastructure in developing countries.

As the agency reminds, the largest container shipping operator China Cosco Shipping since January 8 stopped delivery of goods to Israeli ports due to the actions of the Houthis. At least five ships transiting the Red Sea were signaling their connections to China to avoid attack, according to Bloomberg News. It is argued that the situation in the Red Sea could potentially affect the cost of Chinese energy imports.

At the end of December 2023, shelling of international ships in the Red Sea became more frequent. This happened against the backdrop of the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. The Houthis, who support Hamas, are targeting ships they associate with Israel. January 12 USA and UK struck on Houthi positions in Yemen. January 13 USA hit Tomahawk cruise missiles on Houthi radar. On January 14, their positions in Yemen again were subjected to hit.

Read more about the attacks in the Kommersant publication. “The Red Sea is even redder”.

Laura Keffer