Denmark Considering Sending Warship to Aid US-Led Red Sea Maritime Security Mission

Denmark is now considering sending one of its warships to assist in “Operation Prosperity Guard” (OPG) after a slow start in participating in the U.S.-led Red Sea maritime security mission.

The Danish Ministry of Defense announced that the Danish parliament had agreed to deliberate in January on deploying one of its frigates to the Red Sea region to help with OPG.

“We are concerned about the serious situation unfolding in the Red Sea, where the unprovoked attacks against civilian shipping continue. It is crucial for both Danish and international ship traffic and the region’s development that safe sailing is possible in the area,” Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said on Friday. “Denmark already contributes to maritime security in the area, and the government wants to increase the contribution by deploying a Danish frigate. We will submit a resolution proposal to the Danish Parliament about this in the new year.”

Houthi rebel movement from its territory in Yemen has been launching drones, missiles, and other attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea and adjoining Gulf of Aden in recent weeks. The attacks have caused damage to several ships and forced the Danish commercial shipping giant Maersk to temporarily suspend shipment through the region.

The U.S. military initiated OPG on Dec. 18 to protect against the recent rise in attacks on commercial ships in the region. Even though it is considered a multinational security mission, some nations have been hesitant to contribute their warships, aircraft, and personnel to the U.S.-led effort.

The U.S. Department of Defense had initially listed France, Italy, and Spain among its allies and partners contributing to OPG, but the three countries said they would not participate directly in the U.S.-led mission.

Denmark has only assigned one of its staff officers to assist with Operation Prosperity Guardian thus far. It has two other staff officers assigned to the Combined Maritime Force, a multilateral maritime security partnership that spans the various waterways of the Middle East and predates OPG. According to the DOD, Operation Prosperity Guardian was formed under the umbrella of the Combined Maritime Force and its Red Sea component, known as Task Force 153.

If the Danish government approves the deployment of its frigate, it would significantly increase the country’s presence within the Combined Maritime Force and the U.S.-led OPG efforts. If the proposal is approved, the frigate could deploy by late January.

“The attacks in and around the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden threaten maritime security, our shipping industry, and global trade. As a major maritime nation, we have a responsibility to strengthen maritime security,” Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said on Friday. “We are now doing that with the frigate contribution to the American-led coalition. It cannot go unchallenged when the Houthis, in an already heightened security situation, attack international shipping.”

The Houthi Threat

The Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah, are a Zaydi Shiite movement that has intermittently fought with Yemen’s internationally recognized government since 2004.

The conflict expanded after the Houthis took over the Yemeni capital of Sanaa in September 2014, bringing on a civil war that has seen Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states intervene on behalf of the Yemeni government.

While the Yemeni civil war has died down in recent months with efforts at a ceasefire in Yemen, the Houthi movement has shifted its focus toward the ongoing fighting in the Gaza Strip between the Israeli military and Hamas.

The recent attacks on shipping in the Red Sea come as the Houthis have shown solidarity with the Palestinian group in Gaza. The Yemeni rebel faction has vowed to target any shipments it sees as connected with Israel.

The United States has long suspected Iran of supplying weapons and funding to assist the Houthis.

The United States had designated the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization during then-President Donald Trump’s last days in office in 2021, but within weeks of taking office, President Joe Biden reversed the designation. Amid the recent string of Houthi attacks, the Biden administration indicated it is actively considering redesignating the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization, though it has yet to reach a decision.

On Thursday, the U.S. Treasury Department announced new sanctions designations against a Yemeni financier, as well as three exchange houses in Yemen and Turkey they suspect have helped route funding to the Houthis. The Treasury Department said the Yemeni and Turkish entities are connected to Sa’id Al-Jamal, an Iranian financier with suspected ties to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF).