U.S. Lawmakers Probe Growing Russia and China Ties to Iran-Backed Houthis as Red Sea Attacks Surge

WASHINGTON — U.S. lawmakers on September 1 focused renewed attention on the international networks supporting Yemen’s Houthi movement, examining testimony that while Iran remains the group’s principal patron, Russia and China are increasingly providing operational, intelligence and procurement assistance. The hearing before the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa coincided with a spike in Houthi attacks on vessels transiting the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait, raising alarms about disruptions to critical global trade routes.

Witnesses told the panel that the Houthi relationship with Moscow and Beijing is growing in scope and sophistication. Nadwa Al-Dawsari, a Yemen specialist and associate fellow at the Middle East Institute, said there is “some evidence that the Houthis are building ties with Russia and China,” and cited reports that Russian operatives have been present in Sanaa providing data and technical support for strikes on shipping. She also referenced U.S. assessments alleging that a satellite firm linked to the Chinese military provided intelligence that aided Houthi targeting of U.S. warships and commercial vessels.

Al-Dawsari told lawmakers that documentation from the U.S. Treasury Department points to weapons, dual-use components and parts for drones and missiles being procured for the Houthis from Chinese and Russian sources. She also noted that both powers have used diplomatic maneuvers at the United Nations — including abstentions in the Security Council — that have blunted international censure of Houthi maritime attacks. “So, there is a relationship, and it's evolving,” she said, arguing that Moscow and Beijing seek to expand influence in the region “at the expense of the United States.”

Representative Joe Wilson (Republican-South Carolina) framed the Houthi threat as part of a wider challenge posed by authoritarian states, linking Houthi networks with “terrorist groups and nation-state adversaries of the United States, such as war criminal [Russian President Vladimir] Putin and the Chinese Communist Party.” Lawmakers highlighted the group's use of increasingly sophisticated weaponry — including underwater drones — as evidence of external assistance beyond the Houthis' indigenous capabilities.

Panelists also addressed the financial and logistical networks that sustain the movement. Al-Dawsari estimated that despite U.S. sanctions, the Houthis continue to generate roughly $2 billion annually from illicit oil trades and rely on extensive smuggling networks to acquire materiel and regenerate military capabilities. Subcommittee Chairman Mike Lawler (Republican-New York) pressed for details on the channels enabling arms transfers; Al-Dawsari warned that “most of the weapon smuggling to the Houthis comes through Chinese companies,” and urged Washington to pressure Beijing to crack down on private firms facilitating such flows.

Allison Minor, director of the Atlantic Council’s Project for Middle East Integration, testified that prior U.S. and Israeli strikes have helped push the Houthis toward closer cooperation with Russia. But she cautioned that military pressure alone will not resolve the challenge, noting the group thrives in wartime conditions and urging a political strategy alongside calibrated military and diplomatic tools. “The reality is that the Houthis thrive in a wartime environment, especially one characterized by foreign intervention,” she said.

Debate among lawmakers reflected the policy dilemma Washington faces: how to constrain the Houthis and reduce threats to shipping without becoming entangled in an open-ended military commitment. Representative Jared Moskowitz (Democrat-Florida) asked witnesses what options remain if sanctions and strikes fail. Al-Dawsari recommended bolstering legitimate Yemeni government forces — proposing that the United States work with Saudi Arabia to provide training and equipment to retake territory, choke off Houthi revenue streams and secure maritime approaches. Representative Brad Schneider (Democrat-Illinois) warned against an open-ended U.S. military role, while Minor urged that any military pressure be tied to diplomatic engagement and the reappointment of a U.S. special envoy for Yemen.

Testimony also reiterated Tehran’s central role: Al-Dawsari said Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps commanders have traveled to Yemen to prepare the Houthis for attacks and warned that if hostilities between the United States and Iran continue and Iran loses the ability to pressure through the Strait of Hormuz, the Houthis could escalate in the Red Sea. The hearing underscored Washington’s concern about an expanding competition in the Middle East in which Russia and China may be seeking influence through proxy partnerships, complicating efforts to protect maritime commerce and stabilize Yemen after more than a decade of civil war.

The Houthis currently control much of northern Yemen, including Sanaa, following a conflict that intensified after a Saudi-led military intervention in 2015 and a UN-brokered truce in 2022 that failed to produce a durable political settlement. Renewed exchanges of attacks in 2026 have prompted United Nations warnings that the country risks sliding back into large-scale conflict. As lawmakers pressed witnesses for actionable steps, the hearing highlighted the twin challenges of disrupting Houthi capabilities and addressing the broader geopolitical rivalry that appears to be fortifying the group’s reach.