In a largely symbolic event, the U.S. Senate voted to direct President Trump to remove American military forces from “hostilities in or affecting Yemen” by passing S.J.Res.54 earlier this week.
The resolution, which passed 56-41, invoked the War Powers Act of 1973. A small group of Senate Republicans voted in favor, including Kentucky’s Rand Paul and Arizona’s Jeff Flake.
Notably, the resolution also contained the following exceptions:
“[…] except United States Armed Forces engaged in operations directed at al Qaeda or associated forces”
“Nothing in this joint resolution shall be construed to influence or disrupt any military operations and cooperation with Israel.”
These two exceptions in particular call into the question the true intent of the public vote. Will anything really change? Why now?
The recent Khashoggi case appears to have given Congress a reason to show disapproval, when normally it would not, with respect to U.S. intervention in foreign wars. Led mostly by Democrats, the vote underscores a clear ‘rebuke’ of President Trump – a strategy the Democrats will continue to employ when they take over the House of Representatives in January. In lockstep fashion, the mainstream press was quick to characterize the vote as an ‘end to military aid in Yemen’ but whether that will actually happen remains to be seen. It likely will not.
And in a bizarre twist, the resolution conspicuously avoids naming the United Kingdom as a co-participant in the brutal proxy war on Yemen:
“Whereas Congress has not declared war with respect to, or provided a specific statutory authorization for, the conflict between military forces led by Saudi Arabia, including forces from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Senegal, and Sudan (the Saudi-led coalition) […]”
As previously reported at 21WIRE, ‘the UK Government is no mere bystander, it’s an active player’ in Yemen.
READ MORE YEMEN NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire Yemen Files
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