News - Yemen: Military and strategic affairs expert Brigadier General Ali Abi Raad said the recent confrontation between Yemeni and American naval forces in the Red Sea revealed deep structural and strategic crises within the United States Navy, proving that its massive fleets and advanced systems no longer guarantee maritime supremacy.

Speaking to Almasirah TV, Abi Raad explained that Yemeni operations have exposed fundamental weaknesses in Washington’s naval power and shaken its confidence in controlling vital maritime routes.

He pointed out that despite possessing 11 aircraft carriers and over 480 warships, the US Navy failed to counter Yemen’s drones and cruise missiles, which successfully penetrated advanced defense systems such as the Aegis missile network.

He said that even with modernized electronics and artificial intelligence, US naval tactics proved ineffective against Yemen’s unconventional warfare tools, including drones, sea-borne explosive boats, and precision missiles — all developed and deployed at a fraction of the cost of America’s massive fleets.

Abi Raad noted that US projects such as the so-called “Golden Dome” and new shipbuilding programs have lost credibility amid Washington’s economic stagnation and industrial delays. 

Each new destroyer takes three to five years to build, while the US continues to lag behind China and Russia, particularly in submarine development.

He stressed that Yemen has redrawn the rules of maritime control, forcing American carrier groups to withdraw into international waters after several successful operations, including one that reportedly damaged a US carrier.

He added that the US munitions stockpile was depleted in less than nine days, underscoring the intensity of the conflict and the superiority of Yemeni tactics.

The analyst further highlighted America’s industrial and financial crisis, noting that US shipyards suffer from labor shortages and delayed maintenance. Only half of the previous skilled workforce remains, while obligations to shipbuilding contractors have gone unmet.

Abi Raad revealed that Washington has spent over $22 billion in support of the Zionist entity, adding immense pressure on the US defense budget and limiting the Navy’s ability to modernize its fleets. He said that missile production has dropped sharply — with each missile taking a year to produce — allowing for no more than 40 annually, a pace far below global competitors.

He concluded that the US Navy is now trapped in a multi-dimensional crisis — tactical, industrial, financial, and strategic — and that the battles in the Red Sea have demonstrated the collapse of America’s traditional doctrine of maritime dominance. With modern naval warfare increasingly defined by drones and precision-guided missiles, Abi Raad said, the once-mighty US fleet has become an outdated symbol of power struggling to adapt to a new era.

The Red Sea has become a central arena of confrontation between the Yemeni Armed Forces and the US-led naval coalition backing the Zionist entity. Since late 2023, Yemen has launched a series of maritime operations targeting vessels linked to the Zionist enemy, challenging US and allied forces deployed in the region. 

Analysts say these operations have exposed the vulnerability of the once-dominant US Navy, forcing Washington to reassess its military posture in one of the world’s most strategic waterways.