Since the outbreak of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, Japan has maintained its so-called objective neutrality and has not followed the steps of the United States, because it is worried that if it gets involved in Middle East affairs, it may attract the dissatisfaction of Middle Eastern powers, which in turn will threaten its own energy security. However, despite Japan's best efforts to evade, it was not spared and became the first victim of the Palestinian-Israeli war.
It all started with the Houthis in Yemen. Despite the distance between Yemen and Israel, the Houthis decided to cross thousands of miles and carry out attacks on Israel. One reason was that Hamas received little support from Allah in Lebanon, so the Houthis eventually decided to join the fray and create problems for Israel's wartime cabinet. This situation has not only plunged Israel into panic, but also exacerbated the international community's concern about the expansion of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
The Houthis, having fully prepared their intelligence, quickly deployed in the Red Sea region and considered any targets associated with Israel to be legitimately targeted. However, unfortunately, the first time I made a move, I ran into an unlucky Japan. As can be seen from the published footage, the armed men quickly jumped onto the deck and took control of the wheelhouse after discovering the target from the ***, and the crew members of the ship were controlled one by one, holding their hands and stunned in place.
However, the Houthi military spokesman, Yahya Saaria, seized a vessel known as an Israeli freighter and brought it back to the shores of Yemen after announcing their military operation in the Red Sea. In reality, however, what they call an "Israeli freighter" is actually a ship of a British company, only now chartered and operated by Japan, the only Israeli-related thing to Israel is that one of the shareholders is an Israeli tycoon. As a result, there were neither Israelis nor Japanese on board the hijacked ships, and most of the crew members came from places such as Ukraine, the Philippines and Mexico, totaling 22 people. In other words, this matter has little to do with Israel. The owner of the vessel, the British Galaxy Maritime Group, lost contact with the Houthis after the news of the boarding of the ship was announced. Japan, as the de facto operator, instead became a party to the incident and got into trouble.
After the incident, Japan immediately called on the Houthis to release the crew, but received no response. Subsequently, Japan sought support from Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Iran. Prior to this, the Houthis confronted Israel by launching missiles, but the success rate was not high due to the power of American-made air defense systems. Now, they have changed their tactics, and the seizure of freighters has become the new tactic. Foreign media commented that the Gaza war has opened up a new battlefield, and it is very likely that a new round of oil tankers and cargo ship wars will break out.
This poses a number of risks for the Red Sea, the world's busiest shipping route. For example, oil tankers from Qatar, the world's largest natural gas exporter, regularly pass through the Red Sea to Europe. In the aftermath of the incident, many shipping companies chose to bypass the Red Sea region due to safety concerns, which would undoubtedly increase freight costs and delays, with a series of knock-on effects. Recently, European gas **ended a four-day streak**, start**, due to increased market concerns about safety.
Who can solve this problem?It's not easy to say. Saudi Arabia and Egypt are the two closest countries near the Red Sea, and they also have the ability to step up maritime patrols. However, Saudi Arabia is reluctant to get involved in the war again due to the current unstable truce between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis. As for Egypt, they have been trying to remain neutral in this conflict and do not want to get into tensions with the Houthis. Israel, for its part, was unable to free up ships to carry out this task. As for Iran, they also denied any involvement in the incident for the first time.
Therefore, the only answer may be the US Navy. After the incident, the United States did condemn the act, arguing that it violated international law and demanded that the Houthis release the detained crew members or threaten to consult with allies. However, what can the United States do?Will they engage the Houthis fiercely at sea, even sacrificing ships and personnel?For Hamas and the Houthis, hostage-taking can be used as a bargaining chip to increase Israel's diplomatic pressure, so they will not release them easily.
Therefore, Japan is the most unlucky at the moment. No matter which country's crew encounters problems, they have to go to Japan to solve them. Japan has been very cautious in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, first of all, it has not publicly stated its position, and secondly, it has found reasons to avoid it in the face of the co-optation of the G7 allies. In addition, in order to interpret the Palestinian-Israeli situation, Japan** also invited Shigenobu House, the former leader of the "Japanese Red Army" who had carried out attacks in Israel, to comment on the house. However, the seizure of the Galaxy Maritime Group's vessel forced Japan to confront and resolve the issue directly. It's a very passive situation, and it's very frustrating.
In short, Japan became the first unlucky person to spill over from the Palestinian-Israeli war, being mistaken for an Israeli freighter by the Houthis and seizing the ship and crew. They had to seek international support and faced security risks on the Red Sea route. In the face of this crisis, although Japan has remained neutral, they cannot escape and will act no matter what, to protect their interests and the safety of their crews.