Efforts by the Islamic Republic of Iran to resolve the political crisis in Yemen in 1399 continued, including the visit of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative to Tehran and subtle telephone consultations with Guterres, emphasizing the need to end the war, lift the siege and provide humanitarian assistance to the people.
As we approach the seventh anniversary of the Saudi-led coalition invasion of Yemen, the Islamic Republic of Iran has made great efforts in the past six years to find a political solution to the Yemeni crisis. In the first days after the invasion in April 2015, the Islamic Republic of Iran proposed four articles based on an immediate ceasefire, accelerating the delivery of humanitarian aid, lifting the oppressive siege and holding talks between all Yemeni groups and forming an inclusive national government. The Iranian authorities have repeatedly stated that the proposal is still on the table. In addition, other efforts were made during these years.
In this regard, the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1399 made efforts in this direction. Telephone calls of “Mohammad Javad Zarif”> Mohammad Javad Zarif “Minister of Foreign Affairs with” Antonio Guterres “UN Secretary General, consultations with” Ali Asghar Khaji “Senior Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Iran’s foreign policy chief met with the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Yemen and other parties, and Martin Griffiths, Guterres’ special envoy to Tehran, visited in January.
Zarif telephone consultations with Guterres
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, discussed the latest developments in Yemen and the unilateral and illegal US sanctions against our country in a telephone conversation on Saturday night. Antonio Guterres also telephoned the UN Secretary-General on Sunday evening to report on the UN’s efforts to maintain a ceasefire in Yemen. In this conversation, Zarif, while supporting the Secretary General’s efforts to establish a ceasefire in Yemen and stating that there is no military solution to the Yemeni crisis, called the establishment of a lasting ceasefire a prelude to starting a political process to resolve the Yemeni crisis.
In his third telephone conversation with Mohammad Javad Zarif, the UN Secretary-General welcomed the efforts of the Islamic Republic for a ceasefire in Yemen and the start of political talks. The two sides stressed the need to open and secure Yemeni borders and ports to send humanitarian aid to the Yemeni people, especially in the context of the Corona outbreak.
In a telephone conversation with Zarif, Antonio Guterres described the latest UN steps to end the war in Yemen and called for the continuation of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s prominent efforts to help bring peace to Yemen. Announcing Iran’s support for UN efforts to establish a just peace in crisis of Yemen, the Foreign Minister stressed the need to end the war, lift the siege and provide humanitarian assistance to the Yemeni people.
Zarif also expressed hope in this telephone conversation that we will see the establishment and stability of this country through the talks within Yemen and the formation of an inclusive government. In addition, the foreign ministers of Iran and Russia discussed the developments in Yemen over the phone on April 16th.
Interviews by Ali Asghar Khaji
Ali Asghar Khaji, Senior Assistant Foreign Minister for Special Political Affairs, also spoke by telephone with Sergei Varshinin, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation. The two sides discussed the situation in the region, including the latest developments in the Yemeni and Syrian political arenas, and supported UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ proposal to end military hostilities in order to focus on the fight against the Corona virus. They called on countries and the international community to provide the necessary assistance to the two countries.
Continuing the consultations of the Islamic Republic of Iran with Russia, the Senior Assistant Foreign Minister spoke with “Sergei Varshinin” on the phone on 10 May.
In addition, in a telephone conversation with the Political Secretary of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 3 May, Seyed Abbas Araqchi discussed the need for continued humanitarian assistance to Yemen.
On the other hand, in a telephone conversation between the presidents of Iran and South Africa, the two sides stressed their efforts to establish peace and stability in Syria and Yemen.
On October 2, in a virtual consultation with Iran’s Senior Assistant Foreign Minister, Peter Semni Bey, Sweden’s Special Representative for Yemen, the possible ways of sending food and medical aid to the Yemeni people in the current situation and the outbreak of Corona were examined.
Khaji, Assistant Foreign Minister for Special Political Affairs, said in an interview with Hisham Sharaf Abdullah, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the National Salvation Government, that the Islamic Republic of Iran is using all its power and capacity to defend the oppressed people of Yemen on the international stage.
In an interview with Italian envoy Daflice in early March, the senior assistant foreign minister criticized the Saudi coalition’s sabotage of a political solution to the Yemeni crisis and stressed the need for a nationwide ceasefire and a complete lifting of the siege.
In a telephone conversation with the Senior Assistant Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Sweden’s Special Representative for Yemen, Peter Semneby, expressed satisfaction with the constructive role of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the political settlement of the Yemeni crisis and called for continued efforts.
Griffiths’ trip to Tehran
One of the developments in Yemen last year was the visit of Martin Griffiths, Special Representative of the Secretary-General to Tehran. On January 10, he headed a delegation to Tehran to meet with Ali Asghar Khaji, Senior Assistant Secretary of State for Special Political Affairs, Mohammad Javad Zarif, and Abbas Araghchi. In a meeting with Khaji, Griffiths emphasized the Islamic Republic of Iran’s prominent role in helping bring peace to Yemen and the region.
Prior to the visit, the Foreign Minister had said on a television program about the visit of Martin Griffiths, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Yemen, to Tehran: Griffiths had been supposed to come to Iran for some time, and Griffiths’ arrival has nothing to do with Biden’s recent stance, and I am scheduled to meet with him tomorrow.
During his meeting with his Special Representative for Yemen, the Foreign Minister announced the readiness of the Islamic Republic of Iran to support the effective role of the United Nations in resolving the crisis in Yemen.
During a meeting with Griffiths, al-Araqchi said that Yemen had no military solution, and that the way out of the current crisis was to stop the war, lift the siege and hold political talks.
Sayed Kamal Kharazi, Chairman of the Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, also welcomed the Secretary-General’s plan to establish a ceasefire in Yemen and lift the siege of Sanaa Airport and Bandar al-Hudaidah, and said that foreign intervention in Yemen should be stopped.
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh referred to the visit of Martin Griffiths, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Yemen, to Tehran on February 17: There were good talks and consultations on resolving the Yemeni issue, and we hope that the results of this trip will help to better resolve the Yemeni issue, which is a great sorrow for the region.
Iran’s reactions to the developments in Yemen
Following the developments in southern Yemen, “Seyyed Abbas Mousavi,” the former spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, said on May 30, referring to these developments: The Islamic Republic of Iran, based on its principled policy, supports a united Yemen while preserving its territorial integrity. Such actions will not only help solve the current problems in Yemen, but will also complicate the situation in that country.
Mousavi stressed the need to stop the war against Yemen and lift the oppressive siege of the Yemeni people, adding: The only way to stabilize Yemen is to unite the Yemeni groups and to hold comprehensive political talks between the various groups to form a united and inclusive government.
On the other hand, Saeed Khatibzadeh, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on September 13, in response to the report of the Human Rights Council on the situation in Yemen, called Iran’s claim of arms assistance to Ansarullah fundamentally false and said: There is no proven evidence of this.
Khatibzadeh also welcomed Ansarullah’s agreement with the resigned Yemeni government on the exchange of prisoners on October 29, and called on the two sides to implement the agreement as soon as possible.
Appointment of Iran’s new ambassador to Sanaa
Among the developments in Yemen was the appointment of a new Iranian ambassador to Yemen.
It was in November that the news of the presence of the new Iranian ambassador to Yemen was published, and Hassan Irloo, the new ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Yemen, presented a copy of his credentials to Hisham Sharaf, the foreign minister of the National Salvation Government.
About a month and a half later, on December 7, the US Treasury Department added the Iranian ambassador to Yemen, along with a Pakistani national, and Mustafa University to its sanctions list. The US Treasury Department said in a statement that Hassan Irloo had been placed on a sanctions list for supporting the activities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Yemen, and that “Iran continues to destabilize Yemen.”
In this regard, the Iranian ambassador to Yemen tweeted: “I thank the gambler Trump, who in the last days of his presidency, by boycotting an ambassador, insists on showing the true face of his government and the regime’s non-compliance with international rules.” We are not afraid of sanctions or martyrdom.
In the latest developments in this field, the Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Sanaa, Irlo, met with the Foreign Minister of the Yemeni National Salvation Government, Hisham Sharaf Abdullah, on January 16 and discussed the developments in this country.
In an interview with Al-Masira on March 11, Seyyed Abbas Araqchi, the Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs, said about Yemen: “From the beginning of the aggression of the aggressors in Yemen, we have taken a practical initiative to end the war against Yemen, and we are ready for any dialogue that ends the problems of the Yemenis and the oppressive war.”