14-05-2025
- Politics
- Wall Street Journal
European Navies Leave the U.S. High and Dry
As an intelligence officer aboard the USS Enterprise in April 1988, I helped plan Operation Praying Mantis, the biggest U.S. Navy battle since World War II. Afterward I flew to the French carrier Clemenceau to brief their admiral on the destruction we had rained down on the Iranian Navy. Not much has changed ('Down Go the Houthis?,' Review & Outlook, May 7). They and other European ships in the area sat out that fight, as they continue to do now.
There are 178 U.S.-flagged cargo ships—or less than 1% of worldwide shipping—and few pass through the Red Sea. Several thousands more fly European Union flags, and many of them sail near Yemen. France, Britain, Italy and Spain all have aircraft carriers. France has a base in Djibouti, 400 miles from the Houthis. Why does it fall to the U.S. Navy to deal with these threats on our own? U.S. sailors are being stretched to the limit—witness the recent loss of two USS Truman fighters. Our European 'allies' need to step up. Play fair and do your share.
