Recently, with the direct exchange of fire between the US Navy and the Houthis, the situation in the Red Sea has become more and more tense, and in the case of Britain and the United States and other countries issuing "ultimatums", many people are worried about whether the West will directly launch the war in Yemen and completely disrupt the situation in the Middle East, and many people are worried about the smooth flow of the Red Sea route, believing that the expansion of the conflict will deal a huge blow to the world shipping industry.
At this time, the Houthis suddenly made a move to retreat.
A few days ago, the senior leader of Yemen's Houthi rebels, Mohammed Ali Houthi, issued a statement saying that as long as ships passing through the Red Sea declare that they have "nothing to do with Israel", they can safely pass through the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a step that does not require the militarization of the Red Sea and does not harm international shipping, and ships can continue to pass safely and avoid the trouble of bypassing the Cape of Good Hope.
In the past, the Houthis had to go through a background check to identify whether a navigable ship had a relationship with Israel, and the main goal was that they would rather kill by mistake than let go, and as long as there was a suspicion, they would not be allowed to pass, which was very unreasonable, but now the Houthis have changed the standard, and it does not take too many steps, as long as the ship says "we have nothing to do with Israel", a sentence can be exchanged for a "Red Sea pass", and there will be no trouble. Of course, the Houthis also added that if it is later found that the ship issued a "false notification" and went to an Israeli-controlled port after passing through the Red Sea, then sorry, it will be blacklisted and directly seized next time.
This move is to retreat into advance, and directly expose the lie of the United States to transfer "Israeli shipping security" to "world shipping security", you say that you are protecting world shipping, not shielding Israel, and now the Houthis have put this sentence out, and all the inflammatory descriptions of the United States before have become a joke.
Some people say that since the Houthis have begun to issue "Red Sea passes", at this time the Chinese shipping companies should seize the opportunity to swagger along the Red Sea route, and to hype up the merchant ships that sail through the Red Sea.
Does China want this "Red Sea Pass"?
Frankly, this "pass" does not mean anything to us.
The Houthi attack on ships in the Red Sea was aimed at Israel from the beginning, and we have nothing to do with Israel in the first place, so in theory, it has always been safe for Chinese ships to go through the Red Sea. Why, then, do Chinese ships circumnavigate the Cape of Good Hope, as the West does?
The reason is simple – shipping insurance.
As we all know, there are various risks in maritime transportation, such as shipwreck, loss and damage of goods, piracy, etc., if there is no insurance company willing to bear these risks, then shipowners and cargo owners have to bear their own risks, which will lead to a sharp rise in transportation costs. Lloyd's of the United Kingdom, Reinsurance of Switzerland, and Munich Reinsurance of Germany are some of the most well-known shipping insurance companies in the world, and they have expressed their refusal to provide insurance business for the Red Sea route. It is precisely because these insurance companies refuse to take out insurance that even Chinese shipping companies that have nothing to do with Israel can only detour the Cape of Good Hope in order to avoid a sharp rise in transportation costs.
Therefore, it was the insurance company that refused to insure, and then the ships of various countries detoured the Cape of Good Hope, and finally led to a sharp rise in sea freight, and the reason for the skyrocketing sea freight was that the transportation cost had risen, not the result of the shipping company's active choice. In other words, if Chinese ships go to the Red Sea, the cost will only be higher, and the gains will outweigh the losses.
In fact, the Houthi statement only plays a propaganda role, and will not have a substantial impact on the current situation in the Red Sea, let alone allow the shipping company that has suspended the Red Sea route to resume the operation of the route, even if this company has nothing to do with Israel.