Honourable Members,
In the last two weeks we have seen deplorable images of Houthi attacks against:
Yemen’s Presidential Palace in Aden;
the King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh where dozens of civilians were killed and hundreds injured.
And residential areas in Riyadh.
These are textbook terrorist tactics designed to sow fear amongst ordinary people in the region and also in the international community.
The Houthis want to change the balance of power in the region, legitimise their status, and use civilian targets to do it.
Indiscriminately targeting civilian infrastructure in war is strictly prohibited under international humanitarian law.
I want to reiterate here the EU’s full solidarity with both the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of Yemen.
Honourable Members,
The impact of Houthi aggression on the people of Yemen was already catastrophic.
More than 22 million people in Yemen are in need of some form of aid. Since August this year, 200,000 people have fled their homes, on top of over 5 million people already displaced.
This year alone, the European Union provided 85 million euro of humanitarian assistance in Yemen. Since September, we mobilised another 2.5 million euro in emergency humanitarian funding.
We are now exploring how we can increase our humanitarian assistance to Yemen and support the Government. Just a few weeks ago, for example, we signed a 9-million-euro agreement with the United Nations Development Programme to support locally-led recovery.
We also stand ready to support all mediation efforts to resume meaningful political negotiations. Escalation will leave everyone worse off.
In this regard, efforts to counter arms trafficking between the two shores of the Red Sea are crucial.
The European Union will provide an additional 2.5 million euro for the United Nations Verification and Inspection Mechanism for Yemen.
And we continue to support the Yemeni Coast Guard and other maritime actors in the region, such as Djibouti, to tackle arms smuggling.
Honourable Members,
The European Union and Gulf Cooperation Council Summit, scheduled to take place this Saturday, has regretfully now been postponed because of the escalation in attacks.
This Summit would have offered an important opportunity to talk directly with our Gulf partners about the emerging security situation in the region.
The Gulf is where Europe’s best hopes are for diversifying trade supplies. Around a fifth of the EU’s trade already passes through the Red Sea. The security of the region is in our core interest.
That is why, when the Houthis started striking vessels in the Red Sea back in 2024, we set up Operation Aspides. Aspides has since escorted hundreds of vessels to safety.
Given the fact that we are now facing a ‘two-strait’ crisis, the role of Aspides is more visible and our assets more in demand. But this also puts Europe’s credibility on show.
Today we have a huge list of companies requesting our support and not enough ships to help all who request it. Pledges from Member States to provide more frigates are very important, but we need to get those ships to sea. Otherwise, we undermine our own credibility.
Thank you.
Closing remarks
Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you, Honorable Members for this discussion.
First, I want to stress that actually Europe has a role as a security provider in the region. We have Operation Aspides already escorting ships out of the Red Sea to safety and that's why we need more ships for that operation.
We are closely working with the Saudi-led coalition, and why? Because our trade routes depend on this. Our companies are going via the Red Sea now, as there are other choke points. We will send a liaison officer from Aspides to ensure coordination and avoid duplication.
And there was a question: What has EU done? We have escorted hundreds of commercial vessels to safety, and it is not engaging in this war, it's just protecting our own trade and commercial shipping.
I agree with those who said that the Houthis are not operating alone. They are being financed, equipped, and trained by Iran, and the playbook is exactly the same. Now, the Houthis are committing acts of terror, and I heard many of you also raising the issue of designating the Houthis as a terrorist organisation. For that, we need all the Member States onboard.
Yemen needs our additional and international support, and especially support to the people of Yemen via humanitarian aid, but also the support to the government of Yemen so that they can keep order in country. But I also agree with those who say that that we also need diplomacy. All parties concerned need to help bring this aggression to an end and call on the Houthis to reengage with the UN-led mediation process.
Lasting peace can only be achieved through diplomacy, and work in this regard is ongoing.
Thank you.
