Now a new report claims Russia gave the Yemeni rebel group targeting data in large measure to keep the U.S. entangled in the region and draw resources and attention away from Moscow’s grinding war in Ukraine.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Russia supplied targeting intelligence to Yemen's Houthi forces for attacks on Western ships in the Red Sea.

Yemen's Houthis said on Friday they targeted a ship, which they identified as Megalopolis, in the Arabian Sea with drones, without specifying a date.

Moscow’s assistance in Iran-backed militant attacks that are disrupting trade show how the Kremlin is seeking to tie up the U.S. in the Middle East.

The WSJ says the U.S. is worried Russia could provide the militants with anti-ship or anti-aircraft missiles that threaten military protection of shipping.