- UN envoy to brief Yemeni govt on results of his meetings in Sanaa
- Administration of Hodeida, its port sovereign rights: Yemeni official
By Ahmed Al-ShumairiOkaz/Saudi Gazette
JEDDAH — UN special envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths departed from Sanaa Airport Sunday and is scheduled to hold talks on Monday with Khaled Al-Yamani, Yemeni foreign minister and chairman of the Government Consultations Committee, to brief him on his visit to Sanaa, the date fixed for consultations in Sweden.
Fayyadh Noman, undersecretary of the Yemeni ministry of information, said: “The Yemeni government’s delegation is ready to go to Sweden and has full powers to hold fruitful consultations. But we hope the militias’ delegation has full rights as well. It should not keep us waiting for hours for their reply from Sanaa and Tehran to any proposals by the UN envoy.”
Noman expects Griffiths to specify the date for consultations during his meetings in Riyadh.
He said, “We welcome the UN role to end the humanitarian crisis caused by the Houthi militias. However, this should be according to the three basic references.
“The militias must withdraw from Hodeida port and Hodeida governorate and hand them over to the legitimate government, as this is a sovereign and legitimate right sanctioned by UN Security Council resolution 2216 and all prevailing international laws and norms. Any proposals to keep the militias in Hodeida will not receive any attention and will be considered an attempt by the UN envoy to legitimize the coup.”
Griffiths arrived on Wednesday in Yemen ahead of planned peace talks in Sweden in December between the Iran-aligned Houthi militias and Yemeni legitimate government backed by the Arab Coalition.
On Friday, Griffiths arrived in the Red Sea port city of Hodeida.
The envoy said that he discussed with Houthi leaders “how the UN could contribute to keeping the peace” in Hodeida.
“I am here to tell you today that we have agreed that the UN should now pursue actively and urgently detailed negotiations for a leading UN role in the port,” he told reporters on what was his first visit to Hodeida.
Meanwhile, speaking to AFP, Yemeni government spokesman Rajih Badi said the Yemeni legitimate government has not received anything from Martin Griffiths so far on the issues to be discussed in Sweden.
