UK’s Burnham Approves Military Support To Saudis, Limited To Aerial Refueling 

The UK has finally made a formal decision on the intense political and foreign policy question it has faced for the couple weeks since the Houthis started making rapid gains against the Saudi-backed coalition in Yemen.

London has announced it will increase its military support to Saudi Arabia, albeit it has become clear that this will still be very limited. “We’re doing it for national security reasons in support of our own national security,” Defense Minister Luke Pollard told Sky News of “defensive” air-to-air refuelling for Saudi warplanes engaged in air raids over Yemen. Needless to say Riyadh was hoping for much more.

“In dangerous times, good friends stand together,” he added, defending the support as consistent with international law.

Confirming the action Monday, Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he was “acting to secure the interests of Britain and the wider region, because of course Saudi Arabia has been experiencing attack, is looking at potential further disruption, and we need to keep those pathways (for oil) open.”

The appeals from Riyadh only intensified after the kingdom’s East-West pipeline was taken offline by a devastating drone attack. Blame immediately fell on the Houthis, which have been mounting cross-border missile and drone strikes; however, a US official also pointed to Shia paramilitaries out of Iraq as a likely culprit.

The UK has further said it will “work with partners to support regional stability, protect civilians and support humanitarian access.”

Certainly this Burnham government move is largely political and symbolic - a way to tall the Saudis and the world that ‘we are doing something’ but without actually doing much of deep substance. After all, this is all that’s apparently been offered so far:

U.K. officials say the agreement will start in the coming days, and involve one RAF Voyager refueling Saudi planes on “defensive” missions.

Certainly the Saudis were hoping for much, much more – possibly even ground troops, or at the very least jets actively involved in combat as part of the coalition. The Associated Press suggests that eventually the Saudis will be supported with refueling planes (plural).

While Britain has long had a close defense partnership with the kingdom, it hasn’t shown an interest in getting bogged down in Yemen operations, also at a moment the Iran conflict remains unpredictable

But if the Houthi attack on Aramco sites intensify, the UK could get more deeply involved in the conflict given that Burnham said keeping the pathways for oil “open” remains a high priority. 

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has also of late been pressing Egypt, France, Turkey, and Pakistan to step up. The Saudis recently signed the Mecca Defense Pact with Pakistan and Egypt.

All involved on the Saudi side probably fear getting sucked into a quagmire, but also have clear interests in seeing Red Sea shipping stay open and free.