(NewsNation) — Houthi attacks in the Red Sea have caused some of the world’s biggest shipping companies to reroute their ships from the Suez Canal, impacting the global supply chain.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is urging other countries to join the U.S. in establishing a task force to fight terrorism in the Red Sea, saying the attacks are impacting the international community and require an international response.
There have been over 100 one-way drone and ballistic missile attacks by the Houthis, impacting 35 different countries.
The attacks have caused several shipping companies to take longer, more expensive routes around Africa to avoid the Suez Canal. This reroute has now impacted oil prices, just as people hit the roads for the holidays.
British Petroleum was the latest company to change its route to avoid the Red Sea, which caused the cost of oil shipments to rise.
The concern is that if these attacks continue and fear of using the Suez Canal persists for an extended period of time, the flow of oil from countries like Saudia Arabia and Iraq could be impacted. BP currently operates major oil fields in those two countries.
“Recently, we’ve seen challenges in the Red Sea and in the strait of Bab al-Mandab, and you are making sure you’re providing support to that effort as well. So, it’s about as busy as it gets in the region here, but this tells you that this is a critical region,” Austin said in a meeting with 43 other countries.
So far, nine other countries have joined in what is being called “Operation Prosperity Guardian,” including the United Kingdom, France, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates.