Blinken says US will work with Yemen’s leaders to develop UN-backed truce into lasting peace
Yemen’s foreign minister and the US Secretary of State have held their first meeting only days after the first passenger flight in six years took off from Yemen’s rebel-held capital.
The flight from Sanaa was part of a fragile truce in the country’s grinding civil war.
Speaking in Washington on Tuesday, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he hoped the UN-brokered ceasefire could lead to lasting peace.
He stressed the importance of securing freedom of movement in disputed areas of the war-torn country and ensuring the flow of goods and services to those most in need.
Yemeni Foreign Minister Ahmed bin Mubarak thanked Mr Blinken for meeting him and reiterated that the internationally recognised government of Yemen was committed to finding a political solution to the conflict.
“Our position is we are always seeking peace,” Mr bin Mubarak said.
“We did a lot, so many concessions, to make peace. We respected the truce and we are very hopeful to extend this truce and start … a negotiation. We are ready for peace. The question is – are the Houthis ready for that?”
Yemen’s new Presidential Leadership Council has promised to work with the UN and international partners to find a political solution.
It has stated that it is ready to fight to liberate the rest of the country from the Iran-backed Houthis if the rebels refuse to engage in dialogue.
The UN has brokered the first truce in Yemen in nearly six years to ease the country’s humanitarian crisis and pave the way for more substantive talks. “This is an ... important opportunity for Yemen and its people,” Mr Blinken said.
“After so many years of war, conflict and suffering, [there is] an opportunity for peace that we hope all Yemenis will find a way to seize.”
The flight out of Sanaa by national airline Yemenia – also known as Yemen Airways – was bound for Amman.
It had 151 passengers on board, including many patients seeking medical treatment abroad, according to the Houthis’ media office.
The flight was part of the UN-brokered, 60-day nationwide truce that began on April 2 after an agreement last month between the Houthis and the government.
The truce deal called for two flights a week to and from Sanaa to Jordan and Egypt.
Since the agreement was made, near-daily attacks on Saudi Arabia by Houthis using ballistic missiles and weaponised drones have ceased.
There have also been no further attacks on the UAE after a spate of incidents in January.
The warring parties are being urged to work towards introducing other elements of the deal, including the reopening of roads around Taez and other Yemeni provinces.
Taez, which remains partially held by forces fighting on behalf of the government, has been blockaded by the rebels since 2016.
Last month, a UN envoy met a Yemeni government delegation to prepare for meetings on reopening roads in the south-western city.
The Houthis have yet to name their delegation, raising concerns about their commitment to lifting their blockade.
Mr bin Mubarak called for more international pressure to be exerted on the Houthis to start the talks.
“Taez is still under siege. Even the meeting about Taez is not conducted because the Houthis didn’t nominate their names,” he said.
“So, we are expecting more pressure from the international community, specifically from the US administration. We want to see the siege lifted.
“The people of Taez, they cannot wait more,” Mr bin Mubarak said.
“There is a window of peace. There is a moment that we all have to seize.”
Mr Blinken also said that Washington would work with the Presidential Leadership Council.
“The Presidential Leadership Council [must start] doing everything possible to support the needs of the Yemeni people, despite the great challenges,” he said.
“The United States strongly supports all of these efforts. We are with you and trying to move things forward and to take advantage of this moment.
“Again, as I say, take advantage of the fact that after so many years, there is an opening for a more durable peace, something that the United States will be a partner in and do what is necessary to help make it real.”