Mercenary's War

Chapter 2429 - 2405: Internal Strife and External Threats

Gao Yang would find it absurd to know how Russia would react, so he couldn’t speak too specifically, just generally indicating what a normal reaction would be.What constitutes a normal reaction? Expressing opposition and regret, maybe at most making a couple of statements, and that would be it. What else could they do? Yemen was never part of Russia’s traditional sphere of influence, nor is it a significant current interest. Besides speaking out, what else could they possibly do? Moreover, even if Russia wanted to act now, it would find itself unable to do much and can only make a few perfunctory comments.

So it’s sufficient to say that Russia would have a normal reaction; it’s definitely not wrong, and it won’t even waste any saliva. Anyone with some understanding of international politics knows what a normal reaction means.

Abdullah was very disappointed, even though he had known the outcome for a long time, he was still very disappointed. As for Said, he was not very disappointed, because these things were within expectations; Yemen is a significant interest for Iran, and Russia wouldn’t take chestnuts out of the fire for others.

Said had a determined expression as he spoke, "The other five Gulf Cooperation Council countries have expressed their support for Saudi Arabia’s military actions and stated they would send troops to join in joint operations to strike against us. However!"

Said waved his hand vigorously, then spoke with great momentum, "But we will never surrender, and we will never retreat!"

Gao Yang had nothing to say, while Abdullah, with a slightly worrying tone, said, "We’ve just finished an emergency meeting. We are definitely not going to surrender, but there are still many who are somewhat worried. We’re afraid Saudi Arabia will eventually deploy ground forces; our strength..."

Abdullah didn’t finish his sentence; he looked at Said with a worried expression, "Our strength is still insufficient, and now we need heavy military equipment, especially air defense equipment."

Said said solemnly, "Rest assured, our country will fully support you."

After the two sang in harmony, Abdullah looked at Gao Yang with a worried expression and said, "Mr. Peter Ram, you have seen our situation, and you’re familiar with our circumstances. I want to know if your country can urgently provide some of the things we desperately need?"

Gao Yang was also very resolute, "Rest assured, the aid will definitely be provided! But I cannot determine exactly what we can offer at the moment; we need to wait for news. But there certainly will be aid, so both of you can rest assured."

Abdullah nodded, made a gesture of invitation, and then took a couple of steps to stand in front of a table with a map, reached out to point at the map, "Please look, Saudi Arabia has already amassed a large force on our Northwest Border—Najran, Feifa, Jizan—these three cities are especially heavily fortified. Although we have deployed significant forces towards the northwest, the disparity in power is considerable."

Gao Yang was aware of the Houthis Armed Forces’ situation; Abdullah had not hidden any of his deployments from him, so his words were really a reiteration, but since it’s a repeatedly discussed topic, it’s naturally because of its importance that it must continually be stated.

Saudi Arabia is a major enemy, and using all of the Houthis Armed Forces to deal with Saudi Arabia is still insufficient, so rather than deploying significant forces on the Northwest Border, the Houthis have opted to focus first on capturing Sana’a over the past few months, then fully occupy the country, especially concentrating heavy troops towards dealing with Aden.

Now Saudi Arabia has finally struck, though the ground forces have yet to move, but the situation is one of impending overwhelming force. The Houthis Armed Forces cannot continue to ignore Saudi Arabia, hoping to capture Aden before Saudi Arabia deploys, but also worrying that if they push too hard against Aden, it might force Saudi Arabia to deploy ground forces immediately.

This has put the Houthis Armed Forces in a dilemma; advancing on Aden is problematic, not advancing is also problematic, and they must urgently bolster forces towards the Northwest Border.

"The northwest direction must be defended, but I believe the most important thing now is to quickly capture Aden and wipe out Hadi’s remaining forces completely."

Said hoped to quickly capture Hadi, seemingly not too worried about Saudi Arabia deploying forces into Yemen. Gao Yang did not know Iran’s plans, but Iran certainly wouldn’t worry about getting everything blown up like Yemen does.

Abdullah was actually just announcing the Houthis Armed Forces’ decision, not consulting with Gao Yang or Said on what to do.

"No, capturing Aden will only make Saudi Arabia immediately deploy ground forces. We are severely lacking in forces along the northern line; given the current situation, if Saudi Arabia deploys, it would be hard to say we could hold onto Sana’a. So Aden can only be temporarily abandoned."

Abdullah unhesitatingly refuted Said’s proposal, which was not commonly seen in the past.

In fact, lately, the Houthis Armed Forces’ independence has really increased a lot, and Gao Yang contributed to this by posing as Russian forces, giving Abdullah a lot of confidence, while Said also contributed.

Lavagani really wasn’t very sensible, acting aggressively, always disregarding Abdullah’s feelings and arbitrarily making decisions, to put it bluntly, being overbearing, relying on Iran backing the Houthis Armed Forces in whatever they were told to do. Yet, the Houthis Armed Forces actually responded well to this approach.

Said knew not to go too far in matters, being more restrained than Lavagani, although he indeed gained more favor with the Houthis Armed Forces, reducing their aversion to remote control from Iran. However, control was inevitably weakened.

Lavagani’s domineering approach harms the future of two countries’ relations, while the Houthis Armed Forces have stronger control. This was true before Yemen was overtaken by the Houthis Armed Forces, but if Lavagani hadn’t left, it would be uncertain whether Abdullah would remain so courteous to him now. Nonetheless, as long as Lavagani is around, his words would certainly be more effective than Said’s.

As for Said, his handling style is more conducive to maintaining a good relationship. The Houthis Armed Forces are now stronger than ever, and they haven’t shown signs of distancing themselves from Iran, but Said cannot command the Houthis Armed Forces to do anything anymore and can only consult with them on matters.

Gao Yang, as an observer, saw everything clearly, feeling he should say something now, but after contemplating, he decided to remain silent.

Said urgently said, "But if Aden isn’t captured now, wouldn’t that mean waiting for Hadi to continue expanding forces, to receive Saudi Arabia’s assistance, especially after Saudi Arabia conducts airstrikes? If Aden isn’t captured soon, it will be difficult later!"

"Aden is very important, but are we just going to ignore what’s behind us? We can’t capture Aden only to lose Sana’a. Based on our current troop deployment, Saudi Arabia’s mechanized infantry needs only two or three days to reach Sana’a, then everything would be finished!"

No argument had occurred yet, but Abdullah’s voice had already raised. Internal disruptions had not been resolved, external threats have arrived; even though Abdullah must rely on support and aid from Iran, at such a critical juncture of life and death, it seemed he was still determined to insist on his viewpoint.