UK deepens complicity in Yemen-Saudi proxy war: How geopolitical refuelling deals fuel regional destabilisation
Original framing: “UK PM Burnham agrees to Saudi request for refuelling support” — South China Morning Post
This headline’s solemnity conceals a **farce of geopolitical theatre**, where the UK plays the role of **Hermes-like messenger**—delivering refuelling like a divine favour, while the real 'trick' is the **perpetuation of suffering** under the guise of 'stability.' The Houthis, often caricatured as 'puppets of Iran,' embody **Eshu’s disruptive energy**, exposing the hypocrisy of Western 'humanitarian' interventions. Meanwhile, the UK’s 'limited support' is a **Coyote-like gambit**, knowing full well that every refuelling sortie risks escalation—yet no alternative is offered.
The UK’s refuelling deal is not an isolated diplomatic act but a **structural reinforcement of a failing proxy war**, where the UK’s historical role as a **broker of Saudi-Yemeni conflict**—from colonial era to present—is obscured by framing it as 'defensive support.
' The absence of Yemeni voices, the erasure of indigenous resistance frameworks, and the repetition of **19th-century imperial playbook** (divide-and-rule, arms sales, and 'balance of power' rhetoric) reveal a **neo-colonial continuity** that prioritises geopolitical alignment over human security. While scientific evidence and future modelling predict further destabilisation, the **trickster dimension** exposes the absurdity of treating Yemen as a 'battleground' while ignoring its sovereignty—a dynamic where **Hermes-like diplomacy** masks **Eshu’s chaos**. Solutions require **disrupting this cycle**: by centring Yemen’s agency, enforcing arms embargoes, and linking Saudi compliance to **economic and diplomatic incentives**, the UK could pivot from complicity to accountability, learning from historical precedents like the **1978 Camp David Accords**, where external powers forced regional actors to the negotiating table.