Published: · Region: Middle East · Category: geopolitics

UK sends military advisers to Saudi Arabia as Houthi gains threaten Red Sea oil routes

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has agreed to send British military advisers to Saudi Arabia to help counter Yemen’s Houthis and protect oil infrastructure near the Bab el‑Mandeb Strait, while holding back on broader Saudi requests.

British policy is shifting back toward direct involvement in Gulf security, just as a new front opens on the Red Sea.

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has agreed to send British military advisers to Saudi Arabia to help counter Yemen’s Houthi movement, according to Bloomberg. Riyadh has asked London for support in defending critical oil facilities and in trying to stop, or at least slow, a Houthi push toward the Bab el‑Mandeb Strait. Burnham has so far approved only the deployment of advisers; it’s unclear whether he’ll sign off on the rest of the Saudi requests.

The decision lands at a moment when Houthi forces have taken control of Yemen’s entire Red Sea coast, effectively giving them control of the Bab el‑Mandeb Strait. Before the Iran war, more than 9 million barrels of crude oil a day flowed through this narrow chokepoint—about 9% of global demand. Traders now see that volume as at risk, and Brent crude prices have pushed toward $110 a barrel.

Saudi Arabia is already under heavy pressure on another front. Satellite imagery from a 10 September drone strike shows two damaged pump stations on its East‑West pipeline, which normally carries 4–5 million barrels a day and allows exports to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. One station near Medina shows a 12‑hectare burn scar and oil spilled into the desert; another, Pump Station 9, has damage to its main crude pump trains. The kingdom has shut the pipeline and is trying to increase exports through Hormuz instead.

In this context, British advisers are expected to concentrate on planning, coordination, and the protection of energy infrastructure rather than combat roles. But once they’re in Saudi Arabia, the pressure to deepen support is likely to grow, especially if the Houthis escalate attacks on oil facilities or shipping routes.

The regional picture is broadening at the same time. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is heading to Cairo for talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el‑Sisi. Their agenda centers on Red Sea and Bab el‑Mandeb security, Houthi threats, Iranian attacks on Gulf states, and wider spillover from the Iran war. Saudi officials are clearly pairing new military ties with London and diplomatic outreach to Egypt as they try to shore up control of key waterways.

The next signs to watch are whether Burnham approves any Saudi requests beyond advisers, whether other European governments fall in behind the UK move or distance themselves from it, and how the Houthis use their new leverage over Bab el‑Mandeb—through attacks, explicit threats to shipping, or a pause that suggests room for negotiation.

Sources

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