The First Truce in Yemen Draws Wide Regional, International and Arab Welcome

Aden (South24) 

Regional and western countries including the US, UK, Iran, Turkey and the EU welcomed the truce announced on Friday by the UN Envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, among the competing parties in Yemen.

The truce, which was approved by all parties in Yemen, came into effect today, the first day of Ramadan, at 7pm.

The truce terms included “halting all offensive military air, ground and maritime operations inside Yemen and across its borders; they also agreed for fuel ships to enter into Hudaydah ports and commercial flights to operate in and out of Sanaa airport to predetermined destinations in the region".

The competing parties, including the Arab Coalition, the Houthis, the Yemeni Government and the STC have quickly responded by welcoming the UN Envoy truce. 

Regional welcome

In a message published on Saturday morning, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman, Khatibzadeh, expressed his "hope that this move could pave the way to fully lift the siege and for a permanent cease-fire so as to reach a political solution for the Yemeni crisis".

Khatibzadeh hopes that this step could serve as a "basis to start a political initiative to solve the crisis".  

For its part, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said: "We hope that the positive truce move will be followed by the kicking off a process for a political solution across the country".

The Ministry stressed that "Turkey will continue backing the efforts of the UN Special Envoy in this stage, encouraging dialogue and reconciliation among all parties and providing support to the Yemeni people".

For his part, GCC Secretary-General Nayef Al-Hajraf, praised Grundberg's declaration and the announcement of the Yemeni Government about starting the two -month’s truce.

Al-Hajraf said: "the Declaration underscores the importance given by the international community to the Yemeni crisis".

In a statement, seen by "South24", the Arab Parliament said: "the truce is a real opportunity to resume the political process and alleviate the sufferings of Yemeni people".

It called on the Houthis to comply with and respect the truce as well as addressing the existing talks regarding next moves proposals".

Likewise, several Arab states including the KSA, UAE, Oman, Bahrain, Jordan, Egypt and Djibouti welcomed the truce and expressed their hopes to contribute in pushing efforts for reaching a comprehensive settlement to the crisis there.   

International welcome

At the international level, US President Joe Biden hailed the UN truce in a White House statement on Friday night. He described it as "important but not enough".

He continued:" the ceasefire must be adhered to, and as I have said before, it is imperative that we end this war after seven years of conflict” "negotiators must undertake the hard and necessary work to reach political compromises that can bring about an enduring future of peace for all the people of Yemen" he added.

On his official Twitter account, the British PM welcomed the truce adding that "We now have a window of opportunity to finally secure peace and end the humanitarian suffering. I urge all parties to work towards a lasting political solution".

The British Embassy in Yemen also praised the truce describing it as "an opportunity to reduce the humanitarian sufferings for the Yemenis and improve the regional stability".

In a statement, the embassy said: "The UK also welcomed the recent political consultations led by the UN Special Envoy, and the GCC initiative for intra-Yemeni dialogue. There is no military solution to the war in Yemen. An inclusive political dialogue is the only route to a sustainable resolution".

Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary-General, welcomed the truce adding that it provides "a real opportunity to resume the political process".

Today, the EU welcomed the truce, in a statement by the High Representative Josep Borrell. The EU called on the concerned parties to respect the truce and to continue to communicate with the UN Special Envoy for a permanent ceasefire, to address the urgent economic and humanitarian conditions and to resume the political process.

For its part, France considered the truce “a big move forward that could ease the suffering of the Yemeni people and bring hope".

French Foreign Spokesperson, Ambassador Anne-Claire Logander, stressed, in a statement, that her country "will continue full support to the UN efforts for a permanent cease-fire and discussions needed in favor of this truce".

She called on all parties to participate in the UN-sponsored political process. She welcomed efforts made by the GCC for the Yemeni-Yemeni Consultations to back the UN efforts". 

Moreover, the Yemeni truce addresses exchanging prisoners between the two parties of the conflict. Accordingly, hundreds will be released including 16 Saudis, 3 Sudanese, the brother of Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi and Major General Al-Subaihi.

Yemen has witnessed an ongoing civil war since 2015 when the Iran-backed Houthis seized control of Sanaa and derived out the Yemeni President. This pushed the neighboring countries, led by the KSA, to intervene in this war.

The parties have exchanged accusations of committing violations against civilians. Three quarters of populations live at the poverty line level. More than 300000 persons were killed during the past seven years.

South24 Center for News and Studies