“Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin spoke today with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates (UAE),” Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said Tuesday night.
“The two leaders discussed the recent Houthi attacks against the UAE that caused civilian casualties and also threatened US and Emirati armed forces stationed at Al Dhafra Air Base. The secretary reiterated his strong condemnation of these attacks, and his commitment to US-UAE strategic partnership,” he added, without referring to the crimes of the Saudi-UAE coalition on Yemeni civilians.
“The secretary reviewed a range of actions the Department of Defense is taking to support the UAE. These include continuing to provide early warning intelligence, collaborating on air defense, and sending the US Navy guided missile destroyer USS Cole to partner with the UAE Navy before making a port call in Abu Dhabi,” he continued.
“The secretary also informed the Crown Prince of his decision to deploy 5th Generation Fighter aircraft to assist the UAE against the current threat and as a clear signal that the United States stands with the UAE as a long-standing strategic partner,” Kirby stated.
The UAE is Saudi Arabia’s main ally in a 2015-present bloody war against Yemen.
Most recently, the Yemeni Armed Forces carried out three military operations, which saw them strike targets deep inside Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Saudi Arabia and its allies launched a war against the Arab world’s most impoverished nation in March 2015. The war has been seeking to restore power in Yemen to Riyadh’s favorite officials.
The death toll of the war, now in its seventh year, will reach an estimated 377,000 by the end of 2021, according to a recent report from the UN’s Development Programme.
The fighting has seen some 80 percent of the population, or 24 million people, relying on aid and assistance, including 14.3 million who are in acute need.
