Yemen .. International and Arab welcome the Saudi initiative to resolve the crisis, and the Houthis see nothing new

Arab and Western countries and regional and international organizations, including the United Nations, welcomed the Saudi initiative to end the Yemeni crisis, and the Yemeni government announced its support for it, while the Houthi position was limited to saying that all initiatives did not bring anything new.

The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs praised - in a statement - the initiative presented by Saudi Arabia on Monday, calling on "all Yemeni parties to respond to it in a way that supports efforts to bring peace to Yemen."

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Jordan, Ayman Safadi, confirmed, through his Twitter account, his country's support for the Saudi initiative, noting that it is "an integrated proposal consistent with international legitimacy decisions to reach a comprehensive political agreement."

"After the Kingdom announced its initiative to end the Yemeni crisis, Doha welcomes all initiatives and efforts aimed at ending the Yemeni war," the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

The Qatari Foreign Ministry reaffirmed the position of the State of Qatar calling for resolving the Yemeni crisis based on the Gulf initiative and the relevant Security Council resolutions, especially Resolution No. 2216.

For its part, Bahrain's foreign ministry expressed - in a statement - its support for the initiative, looking forward to "receiving support and welcome from all Yemeni parties and the international community to end the war in Yemen."

The Kuwaiti Ministry of Foreign Affairs also affirmed - in a statement - its support for the initiative, calling on the Yemeni parties to interact positively with it and fully adhere to it to reach a political solution.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sudan also welcomed the initiative, and issued a statement appealing to "the regional and international community to support it."

The UAE Foreign Ministry also considered - in a statement - the initiative "a valuable opportunity for a comprehensive ceasefire in Yemen, and paving the way towards a lasting political solution."

Djibouti's ambassador to Riyadh, Diaa Al-Din Bamakhrama, called on the international community to "support the Kingdom's initiative to end the Yemeni crisis," according to a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency.

In turn, the Gulf Cooperation Council affirmed - in a statement - that the initiative "reflects a sincere desire to end the Yemeni crisis," calling on the Yemeni parties to accept it.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation expressed - in a statement - its support for the initiative, calling on all parties to accept it in order to "stop the Yemeni bloodshed."

The Arab League also announced - in a statement - its support for the initiative, stressing that it "represents a positive step towards a comprehensive settlement in Yemen."

The United Nations envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths will continue to contact the relevant parties and the Houthis to activate the initiative (Reuters)

International endorsement

In the same context, Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General of the United Nations, said in press statements, "We welcome the Saudi initiative on resolving the Yemeni crisis."

Farhan Haq added that the United Nations envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths, will contact the concerned parties and the Houthis, expressing his hope for cooperation of all parties to push the initiative forward.

The United States also welcomed the commitment of Saudi Arabia and the Yemeni government to a ceasefire and a political process in Yemen, according to Galina Porter, deputy spokesperson for the US State Department.

Porter added that her country calls on all Yemeni parties to an immediate ceasefire and start talks under the auspices of the United Nations.

The US State Department’s Near Eastern Affairs Office expressed - in a tweet - Washington’s hope that the Yemeni parties would negotiate the remaining details of a ceasefire, to alleviate the suffering of the Yemeni people and move to a Yemeni-led political process, as he put it.

The European Union also welcomed the announcement of the Saudi initiative, and said that this is a positive step in the peace process, calling - in a statement - all parties to cooperate without delay with the UN envoy so that a ceasefire is announced immediately and a comprehensive political process begins.

The European Union reiterated that the comprehensive political agreement remains the only long-term solution to ending the crisis in Yemen.

He also praised the efforts of Oman and the United States in this regard.

In turn, Britain welcomed the Saudi peace initiative, and Foreign Minister Dominic Raab said - in a tweet - that a nationwide ceasefire and movement to ease restrictions on humanitarian access is necessary, calling on the Houthis to similarly take steps towards peace and end the suffering of the Yemeni people.

Initiative items and Yemeni welcome

On Monday, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan announced his country's initiative to resolve the Yemeni crisis, which includes a unilateral ceasefire and the start of UN-sponsored consultations, expressing his hope for the Houthi response to "preserve Yemeni blood."

Prince Khalid bin Salman Al Saud, the Saudi Deputy Minister of Defense, expressed his hope that the Houthis would quickly accept the initiative, stressing in a series of tweets his country's commitment to implementing it if the Houthis accepted it under UN supervision.

#Infographic_external | # Kingdom_Peace_In_Yemen pic.twitter.com/1JUOZLXK5F

- Ministry of Foreign Affairs 🇸🇦 (@KSAMOFA) March 22, 2021

The Saudi Deputy Defense Minister indicated that the Kingdom’s announcement of an initiative that includes a comprehensive ceasefire in Yemen aims to alleviate the suffering of the Yemeni people, and to give the Houthis the opportunity to uphold the interests of Yemen and its people over "Iranian ambitions."

The Saudi ambassador to Yemen, Muhammad bin Saeed Al Jaber - to Al Jazeera - said that the initiative is a completion of the initiatives and efforts of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and the international community to find a political solution, stressing that it was preceded by contacts with regional and international parties, and that it came in line with the proposals of the UN and US envoys to Yemen and with the efforts of the community International.

For his part, Yemeni Foreign Minister Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak told Al-Jazeera that the Saudi initiative on Yemen is in line with the ideas put forward by the UN envoy, adding that there was a great diplomatic movement before the initiative was launched, and the Yemeni government was "an integral part of it."

Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak also said that the response of the Houthis to the initiative was condescending and negative, adding that they had to interact positively with the initiative to stop the war in Yemen.

The Houthi response

On the other hand, the Houthi spokesman, Muhammad Abdul Salam, tweeted on Twitter, saying that "any positions or initiatives that do not notice that Yemen has been subjected to aggression and blockade for 6 years are not serious and nothing new about them," without declaring an explicit position on the initiative.

In a related context, Houthi media said this morning that the Saudi-led coalition aircraft launched raids on the Yemeni capital, including one targeting Sanaa International Airport.

On March 18, the UN Security Council called on all parties to work with the UN envoy to Yemen, without preconditions, for the sake of a ceasefire and a political settlement.