In an unprecedented report, the US Marine Corps Association has called on its commanders to “put aside their pride” and learn from the operational methods of Yemeni forces; forces that, with low-cost tactics, initiative and the asymmetric nature of the battle, have been able to challenge US ships and impose billions of dollars in costs on this country.
Publish dateSunday 16 November 2025 - 10:14
Story Code : 336519
Afghan Voice Agency (AVA): “We must put aside our pride and learn from what the Yemenis demonstrated,” this is part of the US Marine Corps Association report addressed to the country’s senior military commanders and officials.
The US Marine Corps Association is a non-profit professional organization that was founded more than 100 years ago and its main goal is to support professionalism, education and preserve the legacy of the Marine Corps.
The report comes six months after the US-Yemeni military ceasefire agreement ended 18 months of fighting, with President Donald Trump pulling US troops out of the Red Sea without any progress.
According to the Al-Masirah website, the association has published an unprecedented series of assessments of Yemeni forces’ performance in the Red Sea, which highlight the Yemeni forces’ military initiative and low-cost operations as factors that have cost the US heavily.
In the report, the US Marine Corps Association states that the Yemeni forces have provided “unexpected operational lessons” and have been able to challenge the US Navy “without having a fleet or air force” and “cost it billions of dollars.”
The organization adds that Yemeni forces have consistently forced the United States to transfer a significant part of its naval and air power to the “subsidiary field,” while Yemen has no major strategic tools.
According to the association, the way Yemen operates in the maritime arena and the heavy costs it has imposed on the United States now presents the US military with an “unprecedented opportunity to seriously review its operational methods.”
The Marine Corps Association emphasized that the purpose of these assessments is not to praise Yemeni forces, but to extract operational lessons and adapt the structure of the US military to future battles.
The assessment explains that Yemeni forces have been able to create effects beyond their classic size by using “asymmetry,” “survivability,” and “adaptive power,” a matter that, according to the organization, the Marine Corps Coast Guard should consider in designing its future structure.
Another part of the report states that the Yemenis have achieved strategic results with very low-cost means. For example, intercepting a Yemeni drone worth $10,000 would force the US to launch a missile worth $4 million.
The assessment says the Yemenis have used the tactic of “drone swarming” to saturate defense systems before the main strikes. It also emphasizes that in many operations, the goal of Yemeni forces is not necessarily to inflict direct casualties, but to create a permanent, costly and unsustainable defensive situation for the US.
It goes on to say that the US Navy should benefit from the Yemeni experience in using decoys, unmanned systems and stray munitions to create “operational ambiguity” to bypass enemy defenses.
The Marine Corps Association admitted in its assessment that the United States, despite having advanced intelligence and surveillance (ISR) capabilities, has failed to target Yemeni launch pads.
The report also states that the various threats from the Yemenis have forced American destroyers to use precision and very expensive munitions, a matter that the organization describes as “concerning” because this trend allows the Yemenis to create “real strategic effects.”
The report emphasizes that the Yemeni operations have caused the relocation and repositioning of aircraft carriers of the United States and NATO allies in the Red Sea.
According to the assessment, the Yemenis have shown that operational innovation does not necessarily require huge resources and that a “flexible and non-traditional” mindset can play a decisive role.
In another section, it is written that the Yemeni experience has proven once again that “quantity and variety” can overcome “pure quality,” and that Yemeni forces have in practice fulfilled the same motto of “doing great things with little” that the US Marines have been promoting for years.
The US Marine Corps Association writes frankly in part of the report: “We never imagined that we would one day emulate the tactics of Yemeni groups, but today we do.”
The assessment ends with the question: “What the Yemenis have demonstrated is applicable to us now; but do we have the humility to learn from it?”
The US Marine Corps Association is a non-profit professional organization that was founded more than 100 years ago and its main goal is to support professionalism, education and preserve the legacy of the Marine Corps.
The report comes six months after the US-Yemeni military ceasefire agreement ended 18 months of fighting, with President Donald Trump pulling US troops out of the Red Sea without any progress.
According to the Al-Masirah website, the association has published an unprecedented series of assessments of Yemeni forces’ performance in the Red Sea, which highlight the Yemeni forces’ military initiative and low-cost operations as factors that have cost the US heavily.
In the report, the US Marine Corps Association states that the Yemeni forces have provided “unexpected operational lessons” and have been able to challenge the US Navy “without having a fleet or air force” and “cost it billions of dollars.”
The organization adds that Yemeni forces have consistently forced the United States to transfer a significant part of its naval and air power to the “subsidiary field,” while Yemen has no major strategic tools.
According to the association, the way Yemen operates in the maritime arena and the heavy costs it has imposed on the United States now presents the US military with an “unprecedented opportunity to seriously review its operational methods.”
The Marine Corps Association emphasized that the purpose of these assessments is not to praise Yemeni forces, but to extract operational lessons and adapt the structure of the US military to future battles.
The assessment explains that Yemeni forces have been able to create effects beyond their classic size by using “asymmetry,” “survivability,” and “adaptive power,” a matter that, according to the organization, the Marine Corps Coast Guard should consider in designing its future structure.
Another part of the report states that the Yemenis have achieved strategic results with very low-cost means. For example, intercepting a Yemeni drone worth $10,000 would force the US to launch a missile worth $4 million.
The assessment says the Yemenis have used the tactic of “drone swarming” to saturate defense systems before the main strikes. It also emphasizes that in many operations, the goal of Yemeni forces is not necessarily to inflict direct casualties, but to create a permanent, costly and unsustainable defensive situation for the US.
It goes on to say that the US Navy should benefit from the Yemeni experience in using decoys, unmanned systems and stray munitions to create “operational ambiguity” to bypass enemy defenses.
The Marine Corps Association admitted in its assessment that the United States, despite having advanced intelligence and surveillance (ISR) capabilities, has failed to target Yemeni launch pads.
The report also states that the various threats from the Yemenis have forced American destroyers to use precision and very expensive munitions, a matter that the organization describes as “concerning” because this trend allows the Yemenis to create “real strategic effects.”
The report emphasizes that the Yemeni operations have caused the relocation and repositioning of aircraft carriers of the United States and NATO allies in the Red Sea.
According to the assessment, the Yemenis have shown that operational innovation does not necessarily require huge resources and that a “flexible and non-traditional” mindset can play a decisive role.
In another section, it is written that the Yemeni experience has proven once again that “quantity and variety” can overcome “pure quality,” and that Yemeni forces have in practice fulfilled the same motto of “doing great things with little” that the US Marines have been promoting for years.
The US Marine Corps Association writes frankly in part of the report: “We never imagined that we would one day emulate the tactics of Yemeni groups, but today we do.”
The assessment ends with the question: “What the Yemenis have demonstrated is applicable to us now; but do we have the humility to learn from it?”
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