Russian arms dealer trying to sell weapons to Houthis, report says

• According to The Wall Street Journal, Viktor Bout brokers arms sales to Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen.
• Bout was released after a decade in U.S. custody as part of a prisoner swap for Brittney Griner.
• Houthi rebels have been attacking commercial shipping in the Red Sea since last year.

The notorious Russian arms dealer, who was swapped for U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner two years ago, is trying to sell weapons to the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Viktor Bout, sometimes called the “Merchant of Death,” was arrested in a U.S. sting operation in 2008 after decades of smuggling Soviet-made weapons from Europe to the Middle East and Africa.

He was later convicted of several charges, including conspiring to kill American citizens and officials and supplying anti-aircraft missiles.

After serving a decade in U.S. custody, he was released in 2022 as part of a high-profile prisoner swap for Griner, who was imprisoned in Russia after bringing a small amount of cannabis oil into the country.

After his release, Bout appeared to have shifted his focus to politics, joining a pro-Kremlin ultranationalist party and winning a seat in the local parliament.

However, according to the Journal, he is back to brokering arms deals – a concern Pentagon officials expressed just days after his release.

Citing sources familiar with the matter, including a European security official, the Journal reported that Bout was present at negotiations in Moscow in August where the Houthis planned to negotiate the purchase of $10 million in automatic weapons.

The sources told the publication that two Houthi representatives traveled to Moscow under the pretext of purchasing vehicles and pesticides.

They told the Journal that they did not know whether the deal was brokered on behalf of the Kremlin or just with its quiet support.

The Kremlin did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

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According to people familiar with the matter who spoke to the Journal, deliveries, mostly of AK-74s, could begin as early as October under the guise of food deliveries.

Houthi rebels have repeatedly attacked merchant ships in the Red Sea since last year, but some attacks have targeted Israeli and U.S. military ships.

The United States and its Western allies launched counterattacks to thwart these efforts, which had a significant economic impact.

According to an April Defense Intelligence Agency report, container shipping through the Red Sea has plummeted, alternative shipping routes are increasing travel costs and insurance premiums for Red Sea transits have skyrocketed.

“We are currently seeing premiums of up to 2% on the value of the vessel for a single Red Sea transit as demand from insurers fluctuates,” Louise Nevill, UK CEO of transport, freight and logistics at broker Marsh, told earlier this month Reuters. In comparison, the value was 0.7% just a few weeks earlier.

In January: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters at a news conference that the Houthis' attacks on international shipping were “a threat to everyone.”

The Houthis have also fired drones and rockets at Israel in what they say is in support of Palestinians in Gaza.

According to the Journal, U.S. intelligence agencies have been warning for months that Russia could arm Houthi rebels with anti-ship missiles in retaliation for U.S. support for Ukraine.

“These attacks have a real impact on the prices people pay for food, medicine and energy,” Blinken said. “Ships have to be diverted to other locations, insurance premiums are rising and the fundamental principle of freedom of navigation is at stake.”

Even if the arms deal allegedly orchestrated by Viktor Bout does not include anti-ship missiles, it would still represent a notable Russian intervention in the ongoing Red Sea crisis.