US opts not to back Saudi Arabia in Yemen after meeting Houthi leaders

What Happened

US officials met Houthi leaders at the US embassy in Muscat, Oman, over the weekend, in a confirmed meeting that led to a US decision not to intervene militarily to help Saudi Arabia repel a Houthi advance inside Yemen. The Iran-backed group reassured the US that the ceasefire agreement struck in 2025 still held and that it had no intention of attacking US shipping in the Red Sea, regarding only Saudi-linked shipping as a target because of Riyadh's blockade of Yemen. The meeting helps explain US President Donald Trump's decision to condemn the Houthi advance down Yemen's west coast as a threat to freedom of navigation through the Bab al-Mandab strait while rejecting any military response in support of Saudi Arabia. US Vice President JD Vance confirmed on Monday that the US was in direct contact with the Houthis. Last week, the Houthis seized large areas of western Yemen along the Red Sea coast. Saudi Arabia claimed the Houthis fired a drone at Mecca on Tuesday that was intercepted by Saudi defence forces at about 6.50pm local time near prohibited airspace close to the city's holiest shrines, a claim the Houthis dismissed as 'the lie of the century.' The Houthis counterclaimed they shot down a Saudi F-15 near Marib and attacked an Aramco plant in the Red Sea port of Yanbu, though they provided no supporting evidence.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The meeting signals a de facto US acceptance of a Houthi role in any Yemen settlement and a shift away from direct military backing for Saudi Arabia, potentially reshuffling Red Sea security and the balance of the Saudi-led intervention. It occurs as the US and Israel have been at war with Iran for more than six months, making Washington reluctant to open a second military front, while Saudi Arabia is left to seek either negotiated governance arrangements in Yemen or new security partners such as Pakistan and Turkey. The reported German meeting of US, Israeli, and Arab military chiefs, Israel's offer to intervene in Yemen, and Russia's shifting stance at the UN Security Council indicate broader realignments over Red Sea and Gulf security.

Watch For

Monitor whether Saudi Arabia moves toward direct diplomacy with the Houthis or assembles a coalition with Pakistan and Turkey; whether the Houthis provide evidence for their claimed downing of a Saudi F-15 and attack on Aramco's Yanbu plant; any further US-Houthi contacts or explicit US policy statements clarifying the 'tacit understanding'; UN Security Council follow-up, especially Russia's evolving position on the Aden government; and the outcome of Iran-China talks on the Strait of Hormuz and the June memorandum of understanding.