By Raul Diego
Mintpress News
Recent developments in the Yemen war are increasingly pointing to the possibility that Biden’s ostensible moves towards peace may simply be an attempt to control the narrative and save face around what is looking like yet another defeat in the long-running American-sponsored global war on terror.
WASHINGTON — In his last months in office, former President Donald Trump gave American defense contractors like Lockheed Martin and Reaper drone manufacturer General Atomics Aeronautical Systems billions in projected earnings through a controversial $23 billion arms deal with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a deal now “under review” by the Biden administration.
President Joe Biden’s temporary halt to the U.S. arms deal and his decision to remove the Yemeni Houthi rebels from the state department’s list of global terrorist organizations have been touted as a harbinger of peace in Yemen, where a civil war that erupted during Barack Obama’s second term in office has persisted and expanded to include regional powers.
The Saudi-led coalition of Arab states has dropped more than 22,000 bombs in Yemen since its intervention in 2015 and has contributed to the death of nearly a quarter of a million people since the conflict began. American weapons systems have played a key role in the genocidal war that has produced millions of war refugees in what can only be characterized as the greatest human tragedy of the 21st century.
As the American arms industry rides a wave of record sales to the Saudi regime and the Middle East in general, a pause to the relentless advance of the biggest war economy on the planet strikes one as a political strategy, widely telegraphed by Biden even before he became the Democratic nominee. As soon as the former vice president was projected as the winner of the 2020 election, Saudi Arabia went on a lobbyist hiring spree to prepare for what the regime led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman knew was coming.
Nevertheless, a bleaker reality may be conspiring to quash the designs of American arms dealers. Recent developments in the war are increasingly pointing to the possibility that Biden’s ostensible moves towards peace may simply be an attempt to control the narrative and save face around what is looking like yet another defeat in the long-running American-sponsored global “war on terror” and, more awkwardly, an attempt to protect the defense industry from a spectacular debacle.
The high stakes of defeat
Major advances by Houthi forces on the strategically vital oil and gas hub of Marib last week have forced Saudi Arabia to offer a ceasefire agreement to the rebels. The offer came on Monday, after the rebel army seized Mount Hilan, threatening the Yemeni military’s first line of defense and causing a disruption in global energy prices.
The ceasefire proposal includes collecting “taxes, customs and other fees generated” by oil imports in the Red Sea port of Hodeida in a joint account that would be accessible to the Houthis. Further evidence that the Saudi-led coalition finds itself with their backs against the wall is the partial loosening of the oil blockade, as four fuel ships were given the go-ahead to dock at Hodeida on Wednesday.
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The Most Revolutionary Act 
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