Yemen’s foreign minister hails Turkish support

ADEN, Yemen

Yemen’s foreign minister has hailed Türkiye’s support to the Yemeni people amid the ongoing civil war in the Arab country.

Ahmad Awad bin Mubarak is set to visit Türkiye on Wednesday for talks with Turkish officials.

"We appreciate Türkiye’s important role in supporting Yemen and hosting a large number of Yemenis,” bin Mubarak told Anadolu Agency in an interview.

Yemen slipped into a deadly civil war in 2014 when Houthi rebels captured much of the country, including the capital, Sanaa. A military coalition led by Saudi Arabia entered the war in early 2015 to restore the government to power.

The eight-year conflict in Yemen has created one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, with millions risking starvation.

Bin Mubarak said he will discuss issues of bilateral cooperation with Turkish officials, particularly in the fields of development, culture and health.

“The visit comes as part of efforts to strengthen the distinguished and historic relations between the two countries,” he added.

Peace efforts

The top Yemeni diplomat blamed Houthi rebels for failure of peace efforts in war-torn Yemen.

"Peace endeavors have never stopped since the Houthi coup, the latest of which was the UN-brokered truce, which the Houthi militia refused to renew,” bin Mubarak said.

The UN-mediated truce in Yemen expired on Oct. 2.

"Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council has adopted peace as a strategic option to end the humanitarian suffering in the country and made painful concessions to stop the Yemeni bloodshed,” bin Mubarak said.

“The Houthi crimes and attacks showed the failure of the peace path with a group that does not believe in peace,” he added.

Bin Mubarak said that the Yemeni people have been going through a stifling humanitarian crisis since the Houthi coup in 2014.

“The Houthi attacks on oil facilities are an attempt to turn the crisis into a humanitarian disaster,” he warned.

At least 377,000 Yemenis have been killed in Yemen by the end of 2021, in addition to economic losses of $126 billion, according to UN estimates.

Peace partner

Bin Mubarak said putting an end to the 8-year war in Yemen “requires a real will”.

“It needs a real peace partner and a real will to serve the interests of the Yemeni people over any other interests,” he added.

The chief diplomat, however, noted that the Houthi ideology stands a “stumbling block” to efforts aimed at restoring peace to Yemen.

“This requires new measures to force the Houthis to abide by the UN resolutions and put an end to their disruptive role and crimes against the Yemeni people,” he added.

Bin Mubarak said the policy of appeasing the Houthi rebels by the international community has failed to make any breakthrough in Yemen.

“It has become clear that this terrorist group does not seek co-existence and it is a mere tool in the hands of their financers in Tehran,” he added.

“The legitimate government is working in tandem with the coalition countries, led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates” to force the Houthis to abide by UN resolutions on Yemen.

Turning point

On April 7, a presidential leadership council was formed in Yemen, headed by Rashad al-Alimi, to replace then-president Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi.

“The formation of the leadership council was a major turning point to confront the Houthi militia as this council represents all various spectrums of Yemeni society,” bin Mubarak said.

The Yemeni foreign minister paid tribute to efforts of the Saudi-led coalition to confront Houthis in Yemen.

“Had it not been for the coalition’s role, we would have seen Yemen turning into a hotbed for Iranian militias, and a permanent source of instability in the region,” he said.

“The Iranian regime's interference and its continued financing of the Houthi militia have hindered efforts to establish peace in Yemen until now.”

*Ikram Imane Kouachi contributed to this report