Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia would not compromise on its security and would answer any attack firmly, after weeks in which Yemen’s Houthi movement has fired missiles at Saudi cities and oil facilities.
The crown prince, delivering a speech on behalf of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud at the opening of the third year of the ninth session of the Shura Council, said the kingdom “will not hesitate to respond firmly to any threat or attack aimed at undermining” its security. The Houthis, he said, had chosen “chaos and destruction, threatening the Yemeni people and the region.”
Prince Mohammed paired the warning with an offer of diplomacy. Saudi Arabia, he said, is making “every possible effort to de-escalate tensions and support diplomatic solutions without the slightest compromise on preserving our security.”
He pointed to the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement with Turkey and Pakistan, formalized in August, as proof of the leadership’s intent “to strengthen regional stability, shield it from the repercussions of tensions and conflicts and coordinate efforts.”
The crown prince also addressed Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandeb strait, rejecting the use of international waterways for political or economic pressure. A “multinational defensive maritime coalition,” he said, had been set up to protect “common interests” in those waters.
The Houthis, who fight Yemen’s internationally recognized, Saudi-backed government, have intensified attacks on the kingdom in recent weeks. Yemen’s government this week accused the group of converting Iranian-made air defenses into cruise missiles that it said could threaten civilian flights. Last week, Riyadh said it intercepted six ballistic missiles aimed at Taif, in western Saudi Arabia, and at the Red Sea port area of Yanbu. The Houthis said they had also struck “a sensitive target” in the capital and Saudi Aramco facilities in Yanbu.
On Tuesday, Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Pakistan’s defense minister, said Islamabad would make “whatever means” available to Saudi Arabia under the two countries’ mutual defense pact if the Houthi attacks continue.