Saudi officials meet with al-Houthi in Sanaa to discuss peace process
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Saudi delegation arrives in Sanaa to discuss details of the final peace plan with member of the Supreme Political Council Mohammed Ali al-Houthi on Sunday.
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Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, member of the Supreme Political Council in Yemen, walks after an interview in Sanaa, Yemen, 1 August 2018. (Reuters)
A Saudi delegation traveled to Sanaa to meet with high-ranking officials from the Ansar Allah movement to discuss further details of the final ceasefire agreement and the end of the 8-year Saudi-led war on Yemen.
The delegation arrived on Saturday evening and held talks with Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, a senior member of Yemen’s Supreme Political Council and important figures of the National Salvation Government of Yemen.
Pictures were circulated in Yemeni media outlets today, showing a Saudi official shaking hands with al-Houthi. The Saudis reportedly asked for their identities to remain secret in the meantime.
According to sources of Yemen's Saba news agency, issues such as the “removal of the tight naval and air blockade on Yemen, an end to the eight-year-long aggression, the restoration of Yemeni national rights, the payment of civil servant salaries, and payments related to oil and gas revenues,” were discussed with Mahdi al-Mashat, the Chairman of the Supreme Political Council.
The recent visit adds to the diplomatic efforts taken by both sides.
Omani Mediation
On April 8, Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed Saeed Al-Jaber met with members of the National Salvation Government and the Ansar Allah movement under Omani mediation.
Sources told Al Mayadeen on April 8 that the meeting is part of the effort to extend the armistice between the two parties and lift the blockade on Hudaydah port.
The Omani and Saudi team met with the head of the Sanaa delegation, negotiator Mohammad Abdul Salam, who said, "We hope that this will be achieved, that the damage will be remedied, and efforts will be crowned with a peace agreement that meets the demands of our dear Yemeni people, from Saada to Mahra."
Informed Yemeni sources revealed on Friday that Saudi officials met with the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council to inform them of their decision to end the war and conclude the Yemeni file permanently.
The officials also detailed a two-year transitional period which includes a future form of the state and the ruling government. The sources added that the Saudi vision for a solution comes in accordance with its understanding of Sanaa which is still being discussed and is almost final.
The UAE is Unbothered
The UAE, which occupies strategic Yemeni territory including the Socotra island, has not made any diplomatic initiative yet.
Mohammed al-Bukhaiti told Al Mayadeen on Friday that Sanaa will "not allow the presence of any UAE forces on any inch of Yemeni territory."
However, al-Bukhaiti also stated that Sanaa supports “proposals and efforts by Saudi Arabia or other parties to pacify the Yemeni crisis and reach a comprehensive political resolution to the conflict.”
This might indicate a possible rift between the Gulf countries' approach to the Yemen war.
Improved Saudi-Iranian Relations
Regional conflicts have begun to ease after China mediated diplomatic talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia in early March.
Talks between the two countries produced the first meeting between the Foreign Ministers of both countries in 7 years.
China played a crucial role in the restoration of ties between the two countries. However, it is speculated that the success of Ansar Allah in Yemen has pushed Saudi Arabia to the negotiation table after 8 tormenting years of what was supposed to be a quick military victory for the country.
