US Asks Australia To Send Warships To The Red Sea To Fight The Houthis

JAKARTA - The United States (US) asked Australia to join the Washington-led maritime task force in the Red Sea to repel the Yemeni Houthi group targeting Israeli ships.

Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles said Canberra was considering Washington's request but the focus was on naval efforts closer to his country, local media ABC News reported as reported by ANTARA from Anadolu.

"I want to emphasize the focus of our efforts is in the immediate area and the deployment of regional presence that we have carried out together over the last few months," Marles was quoted as saying by the television station, Thursday, December 14.

Last week, the US Department of Defense, the Pentagon, said it was ready to help set up a maritime task force to protect merchant ships in the Red Sea following a series of Houthi attacks on ships believed to be Israeli, attacks amid Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip for more than two month.

The Houthi group on November 19 announced the seizure of the cargo ship Galaxy Leader, co-owned by an Israeli company, and said the action was carried out in solidarity with “Palestinian resistance in the Gaza Strip.”