US Intelligence Analyst Admits Washington’s Defeat by Yemen in the Red Sea

A former analyst at the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Larry Johnson, has acknowledged Washington’s defeat at the hands of Yemen in the Red Sea, stressing that there is no alternative interpretation of the developments that unfolded in the strategic waterway.

In media remarks on Wednesday, Johnson said Yemeni operations in the Red Sea have imposed a new reality on Western powers and exposed the failure of Washington and its allies to secure maritime routes they claimed to control for decades.
He noted that Yemen’s capabilities have upended the balance of naval power in the region.

Johnson’s admission, coming from a prominent US intelligence figure, underscores the scale of the military and political setback suffered by Washington, despite the massive naval deployments and advanced technology it introduced into the Red Sea. He pointed out that Yemeni resolve, coupled with increasingly sophisticated capabilities, has established unprecedented deterrence equations.

Observers say Johnson’s comments amount to an internal US acknowledgment of the erosion of Western naval dominance, affirming that Yemen has emerged as an influential actor in regional and international maritime security. They add that Yemen has demonstrated its ability to enforce sovereign decisions and maintain a steadfast stance in support of the Palestinian cause.

Since late 2023, Yemen has carried out a series of maritime operations in the Red Sea, linking its actions to support for Gaza amid the ongoing Israeli enemy aggression. The developments have prompted the US and allied forces to expand their naval presence, but repeated incidents have continued to disrupt shipping and challenge long-standing assumptions about Western control of critical sea lanes.