Iran is helping the Houthi rebels try to secure Russian anti-ship missiles, Reuters reported, citing three Western and regional sources.
Two regional officials aware of the talks said the Houthis and Russians have met at least twice this year in Tehran, where discussions to supply the missiles were underway.
They added that more meetings are expected in the coming weeks.
“The Iranians are brokering the talks but do not want to have their signature over it,” a Western intelligence source said.
Multiple sources said the anti-ship missiles were P-800 Oniks, also known as Yakhont missiles, but said that Russia has not yet decided whether to transfer them.
Houthi spokesperson Mohamed Abdel-Salam denied knowledge of the talks to Reuters.
The Wall Street Journal reported in July, citing US intelligence agencies, that Russia was weighing up arming the Houthi rebels with advanced anti-ship missiles.
Since the beginning of the war in Gaza, the Houthis have been using one-way attack drones, naval drones, and anti-ship missiles to target commercial ships and American warships in the Red Sea, as part of a campaign to exert pressure on Israel and the West.
Between November and June, the Houthis attacked or threatened US Navy and other vessels over 190 times, according to the Pentagon.
They sank two ships — the British-owned Rubymar in March, and a Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned bulk carrier, M/V Tutor, in June.
According to Fabian Hinz, a defense and military analysis research fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, P-800 Oniks would improve the militant group’s strike accuracy on commercial vessels and pose a greater threat to the US and European warships protecting them.
He told Reuters the P-800 is a “far more capable” system than the other anti-ship ballistic and cruise missiles the Houthis have used so far.
According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Missile Defense Project, P-800s have a range of about 186 miles and a speed of up to 1,677 miles per hour.
“The Houthis are already creating enough damage in the Red Sea,” a senior US official told Reuters, “and this would enable them to do more.”
