U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a phone call with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.
The U.S. State Department announced in a statement that the two sides "discussed diplomatic efforts to end the war in Yemen and enhance Saudi defenses." The State Department added that "the officials identified avenues for diplomatic communication to find a negotiated political settlement for the war in Yemen. They also discussed joint efforts to strengthen Saudi defenses against attacks on the Kingdom."
The United States condemned the attack carried out by the Houthis that targeted Abha International Airport in Saudi Arabia, stating that the Houthis demonstrate a desire to prolong the war in Yemen through such attacks.
The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen announced on Wednesday night that it intercepted and destroyed an explosives-laden drone launched by the Houthis from Yemen toward the city of Khamis Mushait. This attack marks the second of its kind following the Abha assault.
Since March 2015, Saudi Arabia has been leading a military coalition of Arab and Islamic countries in support of the internationally recognized Yemeni government, in its efforts to regain the capital Sanaa and large areas in northern and western Yemen that were controlled by the "Ansar Allah" group in late 2014.
In response, the "Ansar Allah" group has been carrying out attacks with drones, ballistic missiles, and explosive-laden boats targeting Saudi and Yemeni forces within Yemen and beyond its borders.
