The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) on Thursday (18 March) invited different parties to the conflict in Yemen for talks in Riyadh — planned for March 29 through April 7 — aimed at reaching a solution for the eighth year conflict. Both the UN Envoy, Hans Grundberg, and the US Envoy, Tim Lenderling, are participating.
The Houthis, however, rejected Riyadh as a host for the talk saying Saudi Arabia cannot be a mediator or host since it’s a party in the war. The Houthis say they would instead be open to talks in a “neutral country.”
GCC Secretary-General Nayef al-Hajraf told reporters Thursday that the talks were the latest effort to try and bring the Yemenis to the negotiating table. He stressed the location of the venue for the talks should not be the focus of concern.
“The solution to the crisis is in the hands of Yemenis,” he said.
The talks will focus on six main military and political points, and an agenda will not be imposed on the participants, the secretary-general added.
A source speaking to The Arab Weekly said that the talks will be held under the GCC's sponsorship and thus it is not a continuation of the Saudi Initiative put to the table previously. He clarified that Riyadh is not the one making the peace offer since its civilian sites and government facilities are still a target for Houthi attacks.
Efforts to resolve the crisis in Yemen have not achieved much success with consultations between the UN and other parties achieving little. Since last year, fighting has been intense in both central Yemen and along the northwestern border with Saudi Arabia. The Houthis have not yet been able to capture the city of Marib, situated in a province with the same name and home to a vast amount of energy resources.
A UN humanitarian fundraising event last week raised around $1.3 billion. The amount is less than a third of the estimated need for 2022.
Source: commonspace.eu with The Washington Post (Washington DC), The Arab Weekly (London), Arab News (Riyadh).
Picture: GCC Secretary-General Nayef al-Hajraf in a press conference announcing the talks; Source: Al-Arabiya.
