The U.S. Special Envoy to Yemen, Tim Lindekring, confirmed that Yemen remains a priority for U.S. policy and President Joe Biden's administration. He mentioned that he has held meetings with Yemeni, Emirati, Saudi, Omani, and UN officials to push for opportunities to advance the ongoing negotiations toward a new and more comprehensive ceasefire agreement and to launch a Yemeni-Yemeni dialogue facilitated by the UN. This is alongside efforts to alleviate the two critical humanitarian and economic crises in Yemen and the next steps to address any remaining environmental threats from the Safer oil tanker.
During a press briefing, he expressed continued optimism about the potential for further progress toward peace, emphasizing that key decisions remain in the hands of the conflicting parties. He stated that "Yemenis need to have the difficult discussions among themselves," as a settlement will only endure if it incorporates the views of a broad spectrum of Yemenis and addresses their concerns. "Therefore, we and other parties in the international community are urging the Houthis to seize this unprecedented opportunity to sit down with the Yemeni government to chart a brighter future for Yemen."
Lindekring reiterated his welcome of the Iranian-Saudi agreement, stressing that any actions taken by regional countries to ease tensions will benefit the region, and certainly also the conflict in Yemen. He added, "We want to see Iran fulfill its commitments to Saudi Arabia and refrain from smuggling lethal or military equipment to Yemen and the Houthis, and commit to supporting a political solution to the conflict. We are closely monitoring to see whether the Iranians have fulfilled those commitments."
