Report: Notorious Russian Gunrunner is Planning to Arm the Houthis

 

Notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout is in talks with Yemen's Houthi rebels to supply them with automatic rifles, Western officials have told the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. The Houthi movement is a proxy of Iran and has been attacking commercial shipping for nearly a year, killing four seafarers, sinking two vessels, and routinely launching missiles at U.S. warships and aircraft. 

Viktor Bout gained a reputation as an industrious arms smuggler in the 1990s and 2000s. Multiple inquiries - including investigations by the UN and the U.S. Department of Justice - concluded that he supplied guns to African and Middle Eastern militant groups and governments, fueling brutal conflicts that killed thousands of people. Cargo airlines linked to Bout allegedly supplied arms for the Angolan Civil War, the Liberian Civil War, the Bosnian-Serbian conflict, and unknown parties in Afghanistan (potentially including Al-Qaeda). In the 2000s, Bout's aircraft also supplied logistics for U.S. forces in Iraq, according to the LA Times.  

In the course of his alleged business activities - all of which he denies - U.S. authorities believe that Bout was also acting as an agent for Russian intelligence, continuing his Soviet-era military career.  

In 2008, the Royal Thai Police and U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency ensnared Bout in a fake scheme to sell weapons to Columbian terrorists. Undercover DEA agents presented Bout with an opportunity to sell 100 anti-aircraft missiles for the stated purpose of killing Americans, and he accepted the deal. He was arrested in Thailand, extradited to the United States, convicted of conspiring to kill U.S. citizens, and sentenced to the statutory minimum of 25 years in federal prison. According to documents obtained by DR, his legal fees were partly paid by Russia's Fund for Support and Protection of the Rights of Compatriots Living Abroad (Pravfond), an influence organization linked to Russian intelligence. 

Bout served just 10 years of his sentence. In a sign of his personal importance to the Russian government, the administration of Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to exchange a captive U.S. athlete for Bout (and no other prisoner). Within seven months of his return to his home country, Bout had a prominent role in an ultranationalist political party and an elected seat in a regional legislature.

Bout's new alleged dealings with the Houthis are focused on small arms only, officials said, but likely had approval from the Kremlin due to the sensitive nature of the transaction. National security officials have recently warned that the Putin administration is in its own separate talks to arm the Houthis with advanced anti-ship missiles, which would increase the potency of the group's attacks on Americans. This deal would likely be green-lighted if the Biden administration allows Ukraine to strike deep into Russia with American-made missiles, officials told the New York Times. 

Both Bout and the Putin administration have denied plans to arm the Houthis. Nonetheless, Bout told Russian outlet RBC on Monday that he admired the Houthis for what they have accomplished with "insufficient resources."