Canada calls on China to maintain Red Sea safe for ships
Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly (Getty Images)
China must play its role in keeping the Red Sea safe for trade, as Chinese vessels are also at risk, according to Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly.
Joly said that during a bilateral meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Saturday, she stated that Beijing should "help to influence the Houthis to keep the Red Sea open."
"It's in China's interests as an exporter," she said.
Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea
Since November of last year, attacks by Yemeni Houthis on merchant ships in the Red Sea have continued. In January, the terrorist group dealt the heaviest blow.
On January 28, it was reported that a Houthi drone attacked a British military ship in the Red Sea, and the next day the Yemeni Houthis claimed to have attacked an American destroyer. However, the Pentagon refuted the militants' claim.
Prior to this, on February 6, it was reported that a British cargo ship was attacked by Houthis in the Red Sea. And on February 7, Houthis launched 6 anti-ship ballistic missiles from Yemen towards two commercial vessels in the southern part of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. They did not cause damage to the ships, and one of the missiles was intercepted and shot down by US military forces.
Recently, the Houthis launched a missile at a tanker in the Red Sea which was flying under the Panamanian flag and was carrying crude oil to India, departing from the Russian Black Sea port city of Novorossiysk.
