Saleh: No Foreign Power Can Subdue Yemen, and the UAE Is Pursuing Port Imperialism
In a rare interview from Asmara, Foreign Minister Osman Saleh says there is no military solution in Yemen, littoral states must secure the Red Sea, and African countries should ask why the United Arab Emirates is spreading ports across the region.
There Is No Military Option in Yemen
Foreign Minister Osman Saleh told Middle East Eye that Yemen cannot be settled by force. “There is no military option in Yemen, which must be given a chance to be peaceful,” he said. A senior Eritrean official added that no foreign power, inside or outside the Middle East, will be able to “subdue Yemen.”
Saleh Says Yemen Has No Cohesive Government
Saleh said talks about the waterway are blocked because Yemen is not one functioning state. “Yemen is non-existent. The official government has no control. There is no ‘Yemen,’” he told the interviewer. Littoral states must still decide how to manage freedom of navigation, he said, but Yemeni division makes those discussions incomplete.
Eritrea Claims a Duty to Keep the Red Sea Open
“There are so many eyes on the Red Sea. It is a historic route of navigation and trade,” Saleh said. “Eritrea is in a very strategic position. We have a responsibility to safeguard the Red Sea to be a safe passage for all.” Eritrea has more than seven hundred miles of coastline. The waters of Djibouti, Eritrea, and Yemen form the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which narrows to about twenty nautical miles between Eritrea and Yemen.
Tolls Are Not Eritrea’s Policy
Asked about tolls on the waterway, Saleh declined to follow other models. “This is a new idea, a new concept. Because Iran raised it [in the Strait of Hormuz] doesn’t mean Eritrea will ask.” He added: “There should be a discussion among littoral states and a decision how to ensure free passage. If Yemen is non-existent, we can’t speak with it now about these issues.”
Officials Link the Red Sea to the War on Iran
A senior Eritrean official said Asmara treats the Red Sea as inseparable from the United States–Israeli war on Iran. “The Bab el-Mandeb and Strait of Hormuz are together,” the official said.
Saleh Accuses the UAE of Port Imperialism
In the same interview Saleh said the United Arab Emirates is pursuing “port imperialism” across Africa. “The UAE has port facilities everywhere in the region, and African countries have to ask why,” he said. “Is it just for economics? No.”
Eritrea Refused DP World and a Shared Island Base
Saleh said Eritrea would not accept a foreign commercial or military hub. “We didn’t want DP World [in Eritrea],” he said. “We do not want any foreign power to have a ‘hub’ in Eritrea.” A senior official said that around 2016 the UAE asked for a military base on a Dahlak island that would have been shared with Israel. Eritrea rejected the request.
Asmara Sees Israel and the UAE Aligning on Ethiopia
Saleh said the UAE and Israel have “already converged on Somaliland.” He asked: “We have to ask why Israel is running to control the Horn of Africa? Why do they need a base in Somaliland?” He compared Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s aim to an expansionist map. “[Abiy Ahmed] has a two-waters strategy like Israel. Only for him it is from the Nile River to the Red Sea.”
Eritrea Chose Not to Keep Israeli Relations
Saleh said Eritrea is not declaring enmity, but it closed that diplomatic channel. “We decided we didn’t want their (Israeli) embassy here. We are not antagonistic to Israel, but we just decided we didn’t want any relations.”