On December 19, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced a high-profile decision in Bahrain to create a new multinational force to carry out escort operations in the Red Sea region, aimed at protecting ships transiting the Red Sea from Houthi attacks. In the declaration, Austin named nine countries, including the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain, and said they would participate in the new U.S. mission. Some of these countries will conduct joint patrols in the southern Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, while others will provide intelligence support.
However, this decision raised many doubts at the beginning of its announcement. First of all, Seychelles in the list has attracted a lot of attention. As an archipelagic country located in eastern Africa and in the central and western Indian Ocean, Seychelles has a fairly limited military force, with only about 450 people. The entry of a militarily weak country that has nothing to do with the Red Sea seems puzzling, raising questions that the United States is simply pulling it into the list in order to make up the numbers.
The awkwardness of this decision doesn't stop there. Immediately after Austin announced the list, several named countries issued statements refusing to participate. The first to bear the brunt is Spain, where the Ministry of Defense issued a report saying that it will not participate in the U.S.-initiated Red Sea escort operation for the time being. The second is France, where the Minister of Defense said that while the American initiative is interesting, France already has a sizable presence in the Red Sea region, believing that the United States should include players in the region in the alliance and not make trouble with France.
In addition, although Australia did not appear on Austin's list, according to earlier revelations, the United States has already asked Australia to send ** to the Red Sea to participate in the escort alliance, and the Australian Defense Minister said that it still needs to be considered. Thus, even if it is not directly named, Australia may have rejected the US request.
At present, only two countries, Britain and Italy, have clearly stated their participation in the US escort operation. It is reported that Norway intends to send only 10 people to participate in a symbolic way, and Seychelles, a small country in the British Commonwealth, may only participate in a symbolic way. As for other countries, even if they participate, the power they can offer is likely to be very limited.
Although Austin has announced the formation of this escort group, the effect may not be as good as the United States expected. The United States originally intended to use some small countries as cannon fodder, but in the end, it may be the United States itself that will help. The Houthis have stated that they will fight to the end and will not compromise. If the United States takes revenge with such a patchwork escort formation, it is likely to become a graveyard for the US military in the Red Sea.