Reps of Iran, Houthis, Europe Hold Talks

Tripartite Meeting on Yemen in Tehran

Date: 17 August 2019 - 21:56

News ID: ۶۹۴۳۶

TEHRAN (Dispatches) -- Representatives from Iran, Yemen’s Houthi movement, and four European countries held a trilateral meeting here on Saturday to discuss the latest developments in the war-torn Arab country.
The meeting was held at the foreign ministry in Tehran within the framework of Iran’s international consultations to settle the Yemen crisis through political means.
Senior assistant to Iran’s foreign minister Ali-Asghar Khaji met Houthi spokesman Muhammad Abdul-Salam and ambassadors and heads of missions of the four European Union countries known as the EU/E4, namely Britain, France, Germany, and Italy.
They elaborated on their respective countries’ views regarding the Yemen developments, including the political and humanitarian issues and the developments on the ground.
They expressed deep regret over the continuation of the critical situation in the Arab country, where tens of thousands of Yemenis have been killed and the country’s infrastructure has been destroyed as a result of the war.
The participating delegations underlined the need for ending the war as soon as possible, and called for political solutions to resolve the Yemen crisis.
They further voiced concern over the humanitarian situation in Yemen, urging any delivery of humanitarian aid to the people to be expedited.
The delegations also called for the full implementation of Stockholm agreements, and that all parties live up to all their commitments, describing it as a prelude to the final settlement of the political crisis in the Arab state.
The Yemeni delegation arrived in Tehran a few days ago, and has since held talks with top Iranian officials including Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei and Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif.
Ayatollah Khamenei on Tuesday hailed the "faith, resistance, intelligence and Jihadist spirit of the Yemeni people against a brutal and rampant aggression”, saying they will emerge victorious against the invaders.
"Any faithful nation which believes in the Almighty God and the divine promise will definitely win and hence, victory will be with the oppressed and Jihadist Yemeni people without any doubt,” he said.
"The Yemeni people, with their deep and historic civilization and the spirit of Jihad and resistance that they have shown in these five years, have a good future and, by the grace of God, they will form a strong government and progress,” the Leader added.
Ayatollah Khamenei said Saudi Arabia and the UAE and their supporters have committed great crimes in Yemen, but they will certainly not succeed.
"They are after Yemen's disintegration, which requires to stand firm against this conspiracy and support a unified and united Yemen and its territorial integrity.”
The Yemenis are confronting a war being waged by as many as 17 nations, Abdul-Salam said, pledging that the nation’s resistance and steadfastness in the face of the oppressors will last until "complete victory”.
Western countries, including the U.S., France and Britain, are accused of being complicit in the ongoing aggression as they supply the Riyadh regime with advanced weapons and military equipment as well as logistical and intelligence assistance.
The U.S.-based Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), a nonprofit conflict-research organization, estimates that the Saudi-led war has claimed the lives of over 60,000 Yemenis since January 2016.
The war has also taken a heavy toll on the country’s infrastructure, destroying hospitals, schools, and factories. The UN says over 24 million Yemenis are in dire need of humanitarian aid, including 10 million suffering from extreme levels of hunger.