Viktor Bout, 57, allegedly facilitated a $10 million agreement to provide the Houthis with automatic weapons, including AK-47 rifles. The deal also included discussions that could potentially facilitate the transfer of missiles to the Yemeni terror group, sources familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal.
The agreement was finalized in Moscow last summer when Houthi operatives traveled to Russia posing as merchants, claiming they wanted to purchase pesticides and vehicles. Viktor Bout, who became a Russian lawmaker upon his release from US prison, met with the Houthi representatives and engaged in discussions about prospective business deals, including the sale of weapons.
A European security official disclosed to the WSJ that these transactions comprised of the sale of Kornet anti-aircraft munitions and anti-tank missiles.
It is still uncertain whether Bout conducted the alleged transaction as an official obligation with the Kremlin or if a missile agreement has already been established. There is no record of the Houthis and Moscow engaging in any trade, and both Bout and the Kremlin have denied the reports. Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesman, dismissed the WSJ report, calling it "fake news."
However, the Wall Street Journal sources said that the automatic weapons could be delivered as early as October.
In 2008, Bout was apprehended by the US after having sold Russian armaments across the world for decades. He was serving a 25-year sentence for conspiring to assassinate Americans before being freed in December 2022 in exchange for Brittney Griner, who was imprisoned in Russia for smuggling a cannabis vape cartridge into the country.
Critics slammed the deal, saying it was not a fair swap given the severity of Bout's charges. The decision was defended by National Security adviser Jake Sullivan at the time, who asserted that the US had thoroughly reviewed Bout's risk assessment. The National Security Council has not yet commented on the WSJ report.
