Experts say that Saudi Arabia will unlikely send ground troops to Yemen because the airstrikes it conducts are effective.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik), Thomas Zimmer�� Saudi Arabia is unlikely to�send ground troops to�Yemen to�contain the conflict in�the country because the military operation it leads from�the air has an effect, experts told Sputnik.
�I don�t think there will be boots on�the ground, foreign boots on�the ground would lose,� Middle East Institute non-resident expert Charles Schmitz said on�Thursday.

�The current military operation is having its effect,� Schmitz added as�Houthi leader and former Yemeni President Ali Abdallah Saleh called for�a halt of�the Houthi advance on�Aden and a negotiated settlement.

In late January 2015, Shiite Houthi rebels took over�Yemen�s government buildings, forcing President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and his government to�resign and flee.

University of�Denver Senior Scholar Shaul Gabbay told Sputnik on�Thursday that the likelihood of�Saudi Arabia deploying ground troops is very low, but�its decision whether to�deploy would depend on�how the Yemen conflict develops.

�I think there is a low probability, but�it depends on�how things develop on�the ground,� Gabbay said. �This is an escalation of�the growing conflict between�Iran and Saudi Arabia.�

Gabbay explained the Saudis feel threatened by�Iran�s attempts to�destabilize Yemen through�the Iranian-backed Houthis.

�This is a clear indication of�Iran trying to�maintain and expand its hegemony in�Yemen and the Middle East altogether,� Gabbay said. �It�s a clear advancement of�Iran destabilizing these regimes.�Gabbay added the more threatened the Saudis feel, the more effort they will use to�put down�the Houthis, and is not ruling out�the likelihood the situation will turn to�armed conflict.

�Not likely now but�if things escalate further, that is definitely a possibility,� Gabbay said. �It depends on�how events unfold.�

Saudi Arabia sent troops to�end the Bahrain uprising in�2011, he noted, where Bahraini protests called for�the end of�the Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa monarchy.

Gabbay argued that the Middle Eastern issues must be viewed from�a wider perspective, and the reality of�the Yemen conflict possibly affecting global oil prices must be taken into�account in�addition to�security challenges. �We�ll see how they balance out,� he said.

Another factor includes the possible lifting of�sanctions against�Iran based on�success and agreement of�in the nuclear program negotiations. In such a scenario, there will be an influx of�oil supply from�Iran, Gabbay concluded.


By Sputnik News