The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs has expressed the Kingdom’s welcome of the statement issued by the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General to Yemen regarding the roadmap for supporting the peace process.
The Ministry reiterated the Kingdom’s ongoing support for Yemen and its brotherly people, emphasizing its continuous efforts to encourage Yemeni parties to engage in dialogue. This is aimed at reaching a comprehensive and lasting political solution under the auspices of the United Nations, leading Yemen towards comprehensive renaissance and sustainable development that fulfills the aspirations of its people, as reported by the Saudi Press Agency.
The UN’s Special Envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, announced on Saturday that the warring parties in the country have committed to a new ceasefire and engagement in a UN-led peace process as part of a roadmap to end the war.
A statement from the Envoy’s office welcomed the parties’ commitment to a set of measures including implementing a nationwide ceasefire and engaging in preparations for resuming an inclusive political process under UN sponsorship.
The statement added that the UN Envoy will work with the parties in the current phase to develop a UN-sponsored roadmap encompassing these commitments to support their implementation. It highlighted that the UN-sponsored roadmap would include, among other elements, a commitment by the parties to implement the nationwide ceasefire, payment of all public sector salaries, resumption of oil exports, opening of roads in Taiz and other parts of Yemen, and continuation of easing restrictions on Sanaa Airport and Hodeidah Port.
According to the statement, the UN-sponsored roadmap will also involve paying all civil service salaries, opening roads leading to the city of Taiz besieged by the Houthis, and other parts of Yemen, and resuming oil exports.
The conflict, which began in 2014 when Iran-backed Houthi rebels overran Sanaa, led to a Saudi-led military intervention in 2015. A UN-brokered ceasefire in April 2022 brought a reduction in hostilities, but expired in October of the same year. The new commitment to a ceasefire and engagement in a UN-led peace process was announced by the UN special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg.
Further, Yemen’s warring parties have committed to a set of measures to implement a nationwide ceasefire, improve living conditions, and resume an inclusive political process under United Nations supervision. This commitment follows a series of meetings including with the President of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council and the Houthis’ chief negotiator in Riyadh and Muscat. The UN roadmap includes commitments to a nationwide ceasefire, paying public sector salaries, resuming oil exports, opening roads in Taiz and other parts of Yemen, and easing restrictions on Sanaa Airport and the Hudaydah port.
Back-channel peace talks between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthi rebels have been ongoing for over eighteen months. These discussions have been proceeding deliberately, focusing on a formal long-term ceasefire. The talks began in April 2022 with a UN-mediated two-month ceasefire, which was renewed twice. Despite the formal lapse of the truce, it has largely held, reducing conflict significantly. However, major differences still separate the sides. Omani diplomats have been instrumental in bridging these divides, facilitating incremental progress such as suspending restrictions on ships entering Houthi-held Red Sea ports and allowing more flights between Sanaa and Amman.
