NYN | News
A recent study published by the National Institute for Deterrence Studies in the United States has revealed the failure of Western deterrence strategies in the face of the military tactics employed by the Sana’a forces, noting that the latter have successfully leveraged asymmetric warfare using low-cost but high-impact tools.
In an in-depth report, the institute’s affiliated magazine Global Security Review reported that Sana’a’s forces have managed to outmaneuver their adversaries using clever tactics that rely not on expensive weaponry, but on drones, cruise missiles, small boats, and cheap naval mines—tools that create a disproportionate strategic impact.
The report cited a striking example: the downing of a U.S. MQ-9 drone—valued at $30 million—by a missile costing no more than $20,000, highlighting the massive gap between the cost and the military and psychological return.
It added that every strike by the Sana’a forces, even if not militarily decisive, carries seismic economic and psychological consequences. A single attack can cause shipping companies to redraw navigation routes, raise insurance premiums, and undermine confidence in Western naval dominance.
The study warned that the Houthi doctrine of warfare aims not merely to inflict damage, but to shatter the traditional deterrence model by demonstrating that a small, resource-limited force can challenge broad regional and international security systems.
In a stark concluding warning, the magazine emphasized that this threat is “nearly impossible to eliminate entirely” and has evolved into a chronic challenge—even for global powers like the United States—because the Houthis (Ansar Allah) operate outside classical military logic, exploiting vulnerabilities in the global security infrastructure.
