Washington to install a US friendly dictator in Yemen: Ron Paul

Former US congressman Ron Paul says the Saudi-led airstrikes against Yemen with the help of the Obama administration will result in the higher prices of oil.

“If this war gets out of hand, I would expect that the benefits of $45 per barrel of oil will soon end,” he wrote in an article published on his website on Thursday.

“There is no doubt in my mind that the American people — financially and for security reasons — would be better served if we just came home and avoided these nonsensical military interventions that are carried out in behalf of various special interests that control our foreign policy,” he added.

Paul also said that the United States is paving the ground to install a US friendly dictator in Yemen by providing indirect military assistance to Saudi Arabia and other Arab states.

“We can expect the US to provide indirect military assistance to those who are prepared to invade Yemen and install a US friendly dictator,” he stated.

Saudi Arabia and a number of Arab countries began airstrikes against Yemen on Thursday.

Washington said it is supporting the military action and it is providing logistical and intelligence support to Saudi airstrikes in Yemen.

Crude oil prices continued to rise by almost six percent on Thursday following the invasion of Yemen.

Brent crude surged $3 to trade at $59.71 a barrel. US oil rose $2 at $52.24 a barrel.

While Yemen is not a major oil producer, its location near oil shipping lanes gives it a potential chokehold and stokes concerns about the security of shipments.

The Gulf of Aden has emerged as the flashpoint area in the conflict where oil tankers from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq have to cross in order to get to Europe.

Ron Paul also noted that Washington’s presence in Yemen for more than a decade has been an aggravating factor.

“The fact that al-Qaeda type rebel forces have done well in the various countries in recent years is because they gain support from the local people with the promise that the foreign invaders will be expelled,” he wrote.

The former presidential candidate warned about the expansion of the war in the Middle East.

“This new expansion of the war in Yemen is a bad sign. The situation could easily worsen, involve many countries, and last for a long time to come,” Paul said. “The stage for the “Big War” may well be set and we will be hearing a lot more about Yemen and the Arabian Peninsula in the coming months.”

AGB/AGB

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