When history meets geopolitics: Why is Yemen so important?

Arabia Felix, Happy Arabia

Arabia Felix was the name of modern time Yemen by the Romans at that time, as Felix in Latin stands for happy, fortunate, or fertile. The fertile lands of Yemen and the famous Great Maarib dam made it possible to grow several crops that made the land, its people, and its rulers -The Sabaeans- significantly wealthy. Terrace farming in Yemen went from subsistence crops like grains and legumes to the more economically valuable ones such as spices and aromatics, including frankincense (Luban) and myrrh.

The roman empire, imperium sine fine - an empire without borders at the time of emperor Octavian - ever so thirsty for the riches of other nations, was attracted by such wealth and was thus its head instructed the governor of Egypt, Gaius Aelius Gallus, to send an expedition to vassalize the Arabian kingdom and subdue the sources of its wealth to the never-ending thirst of the empire.

According to Strabo, a Greek historian and a personal friend with Gallus, the Roman expedition was betrayed by their Nabatean guide Syllaeus. After spending 6 months on the road to Maarib, the Sabaeans capital, the Roman legions were out of breath and had to retreat only after a few weeks into launching a siege around the city due to the combination of plague, extended supply line, and the harsh climate. More modern studies suggest that the Romans actually never reached Maarib, but a small garrison town on a crossroad mistaken to be the mighty city.

However, the Roman fleet was more fortunate than its land counterpart, as it successfully destroyed the port city of Eudaemon (modern Aden) and consequently secured a trade route to India. A trend destined to repeat itself in the future of this "happy" land.

The Portuguese and the Brits

Almost 15 centuries later, as the world was witnessing the dawn of European colonialism, the Portuguese became interested in the city of Aden. The interest in the wealthy trade hub was not only for its strategic value at the mouth of the red sea but also in an attempt to cut Portugal's Muslim rivals', Egypt's Mamluks, trade route to the East. So Aden went on their booty list along with other port cities.

Afonso de Albuquerque, the Portuguese captain, lead the assault that happened in 1513, only to fail in taking the strategic coastal city thus Egypt's spices trade routes to the east were once again secure.

Attempted escalade of Aden in 1513 (Dr. R. Kirk - Henry Yule, ed. (1903). The Book of Ser Marco Polo, the Venetian, Concerning the Kingdoms and Marvels of the East)

While the British empire was gradually distancing itself from European politics in the 19th century, it was at the peak of its expansionism in the rest of the world. In 1839, the British East India Company landed Royal Marines in Aden and occupied the city. Due to its position, the British Government deemed Aden to be a vital city, as its navy could easily access the harbor for replenishment and repairs on its way west. Later, the British occupation grew in power to form what it called Aden Protectorate.

The occupied city's strategic value grew even further after the excavation of the Suez Canal was finished in 1869. Through the strait of Bab El-Mandeb, the empire passed with looted riches relatively unhindered by the weak Muslim powers at that time, crossing the canal and into Europe and the British isles. Despite its dominion of the relatively flat southern countryside, the empire rarely made incursions into the rough and rugged terrain in the north, as the mountains-entrenched sturdy people of the region proved a tough challenge to any invader.

Despite the occupation lasting for more than a century, it came to end in 1967: With the rise of Arab Nationalism and anti-colonialism in the fifties and sixties of the last century, Aden was soon to be engulfed by movements adopting such beliefs inspired by the Arab leader Gamal Abdul Nasser. As Abdul Nasser had humiliated the empire during the Suez crisis in 1956, the Brits were even more keen to keep their strategic fort on the Arab land. With resistances to the foreign occupiers mounting, its repression mounted in parallel which in turn further enkindled the fire into the fire of the revolution of October 14th (1963).

A demonstration against British occupation with protesters holding photos of Gamal Abdul Nasse, Aden,1967

The brits were soon out as the resistance military operations by the National Liberation Front and the Front for the Liberation of Occupied South Yemen were mounting with the support of The Yemeni Arab Republic, under the leadership of Arab Nationalists from Sanaa.

Now 129 years of British occupation were over and the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen was founded.

The Soviets

By the end of 1962, the royalists had lost power in North Yemen and the Soviet Union established full diplomatic ties with the Yemeni Arab Republic. The two countries swapped their first ambassadors when Moscow opened an embassy in Sanaa. Moscow continued to contribute to crucial health, education, and infrastructure initiatives in the North in the 1960s.

Moreover, the situation was no different in the south: As Britain pulled out in 1967, the USSR was well-positioned to deepen ties and collaboration with the proclaimed Marxist government in Aden. The Soviet military was granted permission to base warships in Aden and off the coast of Socotra under bilateral agreements, cementing its strategic position and providing the USSR with a solid base in the Horn of Africa region. South Yemen became the Arab world's only Marxist-ruled country, and the Soviet Embassy in Aden became the largest Cold War-era embassy in West Asia, only proving the importance of such a location and the waterway it overlooks.

Yemen on today's checkerboard

It is quite difficult to assess the strategic importance of Yemen without including its neighbors in the discussion, namely the most influential of them, Saudi Arabia. Since its foundation, Saudi Arabia and its rulers enjoyed a special relationship with the United States, the main reason for which the Saudis had an anti-revolution stance since the foundation of their state. The Saudis never hesitated to take action in the Arab Peninsula, from supporting the insurgents of northern Yemen in the sixties to undermining the newly formed republic, to their alliance with former president of Yemen Ali Abdullah Saleh aimed at keeping the country in their grasp.

Since Truman's administration, the Saudis made a pact with the Americans stipulating that the latter shall defend them from what they called "Soviet encroachment." As a result, the United States boosted its presence in the region to protect its ally from the perceived threat from the Southern republics. Yemen in that regard, as a republic, poses a doubles threat to the Saudi-US alliance, as any strong state in Yemen is perceived to be a threat to the Saudi dominance over the peninsula, added to the strategic position Yemen has as a gateway to the Red Sea, controlling Saudi naval shipping to the East from its ports on that water space.

Map of Bab al-Mandeb, Red Sea and the Suez Canal (Source: US Energy Information Administration)

If "Israel" is added to the picture, another perspective comes up with the possibility of an independent, strong, and sovereign Yemen: With the normalization agreements already in place with the UAE and Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and "Israel" are closer than ever at this stage, in secret as well as in public. The interests of both parties in keeping the region under the US-Western leash converge unsurprisingly, as the port of "Eilat" in occupied Palestine could be rendered useless if Yemen decides to close the Bab al-Mandeb strait in case of an escalation or a war. As 99% of the Israeli economy's supplies, exports, and imports, pass through the sea, such an action could pose a serious threat to the Israeli occupation in the future.

Why the world is silent when it comes to the war on Yemen?

In 2018, according to the US Energy Information Administration, the "total petroleum flows through the Bab El-Mandeb Strait accounted for about 9% of total seaborne-traded petroleum," while around 21% passes through the Hormuz Strait to the north, without getting into the details of consumers' seaborne goods nor other prime materials. The region's oil is not crucial only in keeping Western economies running smoothly, but in assuring the US dominance over most energy supplies around the world. The mere idea of losing such control added to the prospect of weakening the US' regional allies pushes the US into endlessly pumping arms in this war that they already lost.

While Russia seems to be focused on other scenarios closer to its borders, China seems to be focused on its internal development rather than trying to change to order in West Asia. The Chinese economy also relies on energy supplies passing through these straits, so it seems that the Chinese main concern is securing these resources without supporting one side or the other. The ascending power is not incentivized to take part in the regional conflict in West Asia as it could alienate future allies and hinder corporation agreements.

As protagonists of this story, Yemenis, as previously mentioned, expressed no intentions of becoming pirates or hindering the passage of vessels through the strait; nevertheless they refused that the unjust global system installed and protected by the US continues to contribute to their suffering. Yemenis have sent a clear message:

As one of the few remaining true revolutionaries in this world, Yemenis are saying that no offense shall be initiated against a guest or a passerby, but if words like "stability, rules-based order, or safeguarding the status quo" mean the continuation of the enslavement and impoverishment of their land and people and the murder of their children, they will disregard what the so-called global powers think is best for the stability of their revered international system, and proceed with their revolution.

True revolutionaries the Yemenis are. Fortune favors the brave, a Latin proverb says (fortuna audaces iuvat).

Arabia Felix, Happy Arabia

The Portuguese and the Brits

The Soviets

Yemen on today's checkerboard

Read more: "Israel's" piggyback on the Saudi-Emirati war on Yemen

Why the world is silent when it comes to the war on Yemen?