Russia and China accuse US of carrying out illegal attacks on Yemen

Speaking at the UN Security Council, Russia’s deputy UN ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy and China’s UN envoy Zhang Jun have accused the US of carrying out unauthorised and illegal attacks on Yemen.

The pair argued that the Security Council has not authorised military action against Yemen. US deputy ambassador Robert Wood and UK ambassador Barbara Woodward responded at Wednesday’s meeting by saying that strikes on Houthis targets in Yemen were taken in self-defence and have been “proportionate and legal action”.

The Houthis have been attacking both commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November in protest against Israel’s war on Gaza, causing major disruptions to one of the world’s major shipping routes.