Defense nominee would rethink Yemen strategy against al Qaeda

Secretary of Defense nominee Ashton Carter says he believes the U.S. must alter its counterterrorism strategy against Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), following the Houthi takeover of Yemen’s government last month.

“I understand the current U.S. strategy seeks to prevent and disrupt terrorist plots that threaten U.S. interests at home and abroad, while helping the Yemeni government build its own [counterterrorism] capabilities to combat AQAP over the long run,” Carter said in answers provided to the Senate Armed Services Committee in advance of this confirmation hearing Wednesday and obtained by The Hill.

{mosads}”However, I believe the turbulent political situation in Yemen will complicate these efforts, and will require adapting the strategy to these changes,” he said. 

President Obama as recently as September touted Yemen as a model for a “light footprint” counterterrorism strategy that relies on local government forces on the ground, to supplement a small presence of U.S. special operations troops and drone strikes. 

However, that cooperation effectively ended after the Western-backed government in Yemen resigned after rebels from the Houthi tribe seized much of the country.

U.S. officials said they will continue to target al Qaeda in Yemen, and deny suspending counterterrorism operations. 

Carter said AQAP “poses a significant terrorist threat to the U.S. homeland and U.S. interests in the Middle East,” and countering the group “should be a top priority for the U.S.” 

He noted that since 2009, the group has tried at least three times to conduct attacks on the U.S. through the use of sophisticated concealed bombs.

The group recently claimed responsibility for the attack on the French newspaper Charlie Hebdo, which killed 12. 

“Continued political turbulence in Yemen risks further hindering Yemeni efforts against AQAP and enabling AQAP to continue to plot attacks and recruit operatives in Yemen’s ungoverned spaces,” he said. 

“AQAP’s claim of responsibility for the Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris demonstrates that AQAP continues to pose a threat to the United States and its Allies and partners,” he said. 

Carter said “it remains to be seen” how the political situation in Yemen will affect the U.S. relationship with the Yemeni government. 

“Nevertheless, I believe the U.S. should continue to maintain pressure on AQAP by using all necessary means to eliminate terrorist threats to our national security,” he said.