China in touch with Yemen's Houthis to allow ships to sail through Red Sea

China has held direct talks with Yemen's Houthi movement to enable its tankers to sail through the southern Red Sea without being attacked after the Iran-aligned militia pledged to prevent access to Saudi ports, six sources with knowledge of the matter have said.



The Houthis declared their blockade on July 20, opening a new front against the U.S. and its allies in the Iran war and expanding attacks on tankers carrying energy and other supplies to markets beyond the Middle East.



Beijing has asked the Houthis directly to promise safe passage for its tankers, according to the sources, who included a senior Iranian official.



China was among the first countries to contact the Houthis directly about transits through Bab el-Mandeb, the strait at the southern end of the Red Sea with Yemen on its eastern bank, said the sources, who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter.