President Donald Trump vows decisive U.S. action if Yemen’s Houthis blockade Red Sea shipping. Tankers reroute, oil markets react, and Somaliland’s strategic importance to Red Sea security comes into sharper focus
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said the United States would respond forcefully if Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi movement follows through on threats to block Saudi Arabian shipping through the Red Sea, as military and commercial shipping warnings intensified over one of the world’s most strategically important maritime corridors.
“So far, it hasn’t happened, might happen, but we take care of things,” Trump said during an Oval Office meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Tuesday.
“If something like that happens, we take care of it. We’ve done that with the Houthis before, and we haven’t heard from them in a while since we did what we did originally.”
Trump’s comments came after the Houthis announced a “maritime embargo” against Saudi Arabia, warning that ships loading or unloading cargo at Saudi ports could become targets. The threat raises fears of a new escalation in the Middle East that could further disrupt global energy supplies already strained by the broader U.S.-Iran conflict.
A New Threat to a Global Energy Lifeline
The Bab el-Mandeb Strait, connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, handles one of the world’s busiest maritime trade routes.
With Iranian attacks disrupting traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia has increasingly relied on its East-West Pipeline to transport crude oil across the kingdom to the Red Sea port of Yanbu before shipping it through Bab el-Mandeb toward Asian markets.
Analysts estimate more than 3.5 to 4 million barrels of Saudi crude and petroleum products per day have recently moved through this alternative corridor.
If the Houthis successfully disrupt that route, energy analysts warn roughly 4 percent of global oil supplies could temporarily be removed from international markets, adding fresh upward pressure on already elevated oil prices.
Tankers Reverse Course
The threat has already altered shipping behavior.
Multiple oil tankers carrying Saudi crude for India and China turned around in the Red Sea after loading at Yanbu rather than continue toward the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Other refiners in Asia have begun exploring longer and significantly more expensive routes through Egypt’s Suez Canal and the SUMED pipeline before sailing around Africa—a journey that can add as much as four weeks to deliveries.
Shipping brokers said the changing tanker movements demonstrate that commercial operators are taking Houthi threats seriously despite no confirmed attacks since the embargo announcement.
Maritime Security Agencies Issue Warnings
The Joint Maritime Information Center, a U.S. Navy-supported maritime security organization headquartered in Bahrain, warned that intelligence indicates the Houthis have deployed missiles and drones near Bab el-Mandeb.
According to the advisory, the group has completed preparations to attack commercial shipping.
The European Union’s Aspides naval mission separately advised merchant vessels linked to Saudi Arabia, the United States or Israel to avoid transiting the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden until the threat level declines.
Although commercial traffic continues, maritime intelligence firms reported a sharp decline in vessel movements immediately following the Houthi announcement.
Trump Signals Military Response
Trump pointed to the U.S. military campaign against the Houthis conducted in 2025 as evidence Washington remains prepared to intervene.
“That was about 45 days of very powerful action we took against the Houthis, and we’ve had no problem with the Houthis,” Trump said.
“I think that if there is something like that, we’ll just have to take care of business.”
Between March and May 2025, U.S. forces struck more than 1,000 Houthi military targets, according to the Pentagon, targeting missile launchers, drone facilities, command centers and senior commanders after repeated attacks on commercial shipping.
The campaign ended following an Oman-mediated ceasefire that halted Houthi attacks against American vessels, though it did not extend to Israeli-linked shipping.
Rubio: Any Red Sea Blockade Would Be “Problematic”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio echoed the administration’s concerns during a visit to the Philippines.
“Anything that restricts shipping through the Red Sea would be problematic for the same reasons that the Strait of Hormuz is problematic,” Rubio said.
Rubio accused Iran of fueling regional instability through support for the Houthis, calling Tehran “the troublemaker in the region.”
The renewed warnings underscore Washington’s growing concern that Iran and its regional allies could simultaneously pressure both of the Middle East’s critical maritime chokepoints—Hormuz in the east and Bab el-Mandeb in the west.
Somaliland’s Strategic Importance in Red Sea Security
The mounting crisis has also renewed attention on the strategic geography of the Horn of Africa, particularly Somaliland, whose coastline stretches more than 850 kilometers along the Gulf of Aden overlooking approaches to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
As shipping threats expand, Somaliland’s location has become increasingly significant for international maritime security, anti-piracy operations and protection of commercial shipping between Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
The deep-water Port of Berbera, developed with major international investment, sits along one of the world’s busiest maritime corridors and has increasingly been viewed by Western and regional policymakers as a potential logistics, naval and commercial hub supporting freedom of navigation in the Red Sea.
Security analysts argue that stable partners on the African side of the Red Sea are becoming increasingly important as instability continues along Yemen’s coastline. The combination of Berbera Port, Somaliland’s relative stability, and its position overlooking key shipping lanes has elevated its geopolitical relevance in discussions surrounding regional security architecture, energy resilience and maritime trade.
With threats emerging simultaneously around both Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb, policymakers increasingly see the western side of the Red Sea as critical to protecting global commerce and ensuring uninterrupted movement of energy supplies.
Global Markets Watching Closely
Despite the absence of confirmed attacks since the embargo announcement, oil markets have reacted cautiously.
Brent crude prices have climbed as traders assess the possibility of disruptions affecting both the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb simultaneously.
Shipping insurers, tanker operators and refiners continue monitoring developments closely, with several companies already rerouting vessels to reduce exposure.
For Washington, Riyadh and international allies, the stakes extend well beyond regional security.
Nearly one-sixth of global maritime commerce passes through the Red Sea corridor, making any prolonged disruption a threat to worldwide supply chains, energy markets and inflation.
Trump’s warning signals that the United States remains prepared to intervene militarily should the Houthis attempt to translate their threats into action, while shipping companies weigh increasingly costly alternatives to one of the world’s most vital maritime highways.
