US Special Envoy to Yemen Tim Lenderking implicitly acknowledged that Washington was in contact with the Iran-backed Houthi militias to persuade them to join the peace process and reach a peaceful solution in the war-torn country.
At the same time, he said that the ongoing fighting in the Marib province will deepen the current humanitarian crisis, accusing the Houthis of weaponizing the crisis for their interests.
Speaking at a webinar sponsored by the National Council on US-Arab Relations on Thursday, he remarked: “My experience from the Houthis is that they have spoken about a commitment towards peace in Yemen.... We continue to engage with them.”
“My experience from the Houthis is that they have spoken about a commitment towards peace in Yemen and I think there are certainly elements within the leadership that favor that. I think continued engagement with them, from the Omanis, from other actors, from Saudi Arabia, from ourselves, is an essential piece.”
“I think we have to continue to incentivize them,” he added.
“I have spoken on a number occasions about the legitimacy of the Houthis which is to say that the US recognizes them as a legitimate actor. We recognize them as a group that has made significant gains. No one can wish them away or out of the conflict, so let’s deal with the realities that exist on the ground and bring that international consensus and also the humanitarian prerogatives,” Lenderking said.
“I encourage the Houthis to support the UN-led process and the efforts that are underway to support peace and a political transition.”
“When I was appointed as special envoy, the president asked me to do two things, to engage on two tracks. One is the humanitarian track, and the other is a political track, to advance a durable solution to the conflict. I think the dual mandate reflects the US commitment to understanding the humanitarian crisis facing Yemenis, as well as our understanding that the humanitarian crisis and the war are connected,” continued the envoy.
“As long as the war continues, the humanitarian crisis will continue to worsen and at the same time, the increasing instability will likely fuel further conflict. So, we have a real need to address both of these tracks at the same time, but not let one wait on the other.”
“The roots of the crisis are deep. Years of instability and weak governance in Yemen have led to the erosion of basic services and a troubled economy and the disruption of a peaceful political transition and the outbreak of war almost seven years ago have greatly accelerated this trend,” he remarked.
“There aren’t any easy solutions to address the humanitarian crisis. Obviously, we’re going to talk more about the need of donors to do more, but we should be wary of those who do suggest there are easy solutions,” he stated without elaborating.
“What I’ve seen is these are often just the latest attempts by conflict actors to weaponize the humanitarian situation. And so really, for where I stand, I think the US also, the only way to durably address persistent constraints to the flow of goods, aid and people, is to stop the fighting. And the only way to begin addressing the root causes of the humanitarian crisis is to reach a political solution to the conflict. That is why the US continues to urge, and I do so again today, the need for a comprehensive nationwide ceasefire and swift transition to political talks.”
“On the positive side, I am glad to see there is engagement again on the Riyadh Agreement, which is the effort to bring the South into greater stability and that will improve basic services for Yemenis. We think as the Riyadh Agreement goes forward it will create more opportunities for the Yemen government to return to Aden and indeed for the provision of basic services, all the basic elements of infrastructure in the South to go forward.”
“There is a stronger international consensus to end the conflict than there has been over the course of the last six years.”
Lenderking urged the Houthis and Yemeni government to engage in the ceasefire and end the crisis of delivering aid and fuel. “We also urge the Houthis to avoid stockpiling and manipulating fuel prices which we fear has kept prices artificially high even as fuel has arrived through Hodeidah and over land through southern ports,” he added.
He also praised the role of Oman and its significance in supporting a solution to the crisis. “The Omanis sent a delegation to Sanaa just two weeks ago. They spent a long time there. We appreciate very much the engagements they had with the Houthi leadership in Sanaa.”
David Gressly, United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen, called on the international community to fulfill their pledges to increase funding for humanitarian assistance to Yemen and warned that aid programs could otherwise be forced to close by July and August, speaking of a pressing need for $2 billion.
He also said humanitarian organizations are having problems reaching some 6 million Yemenis.
“We do consider this the worst humanitarian crisis currently facing any country in the world at this time.”
“Eighty-two percent of the districts in the country have very limited and non-existent health services and in general basic services are in a process of collapsing and are in severe risk of not being able to continue to provide even the most minimal services,” he warned.
“Last month was the worst month in several years in fact in a number of civilian casualties in large part due to the fight that’s taking place in Marib,” he revealed.
On the economic crisis, Gressly said: “The economy has collapsed by about 50 percent since the beginning of the war. Yemen was the poorest country in the region before the war started, so you can imagine what 50 percent reduction of the economy means.”
Sarah Charles, US Agency for International Development Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance Assistant to the Administrator, said the US is gravely concerned about the humanitarian crisis in Yemen which remains one of the worst in the world.
“Two-thirds of the country’s population is now in need of humanitarian assistance. That’s more than 20 million Yemenis who struggle every day to survive without basic necessities, including more than 2 million young children facing deadly malnutrition this year,” he added.
“Over the course of this conflict, now entering the seventh year we’ve seen families uprooted over and over again as conflict lines shift and more vulnerable every time they are forced to flee,” she noted.
“We are seeing this most acutely now in Marib where the Houthis’ latest offensive is killing civilians and threatens to displace hundreds of thousands of more people. After years of conflict and growing poverty, Yemen is already in a precarious situation. While aid from the international community has so far prevented vulnerable populations from slipping into famine, this recent escalation of violence is only increasing humanitarian need and placing further strain on an already stretched humanitarian operation,” Charles warned.
“Our brave partners are urgently scaling up assistance in Marib despite very significant challenges affecting the community. With US aid support, the humanitarian community provided emergency aid, including shelter, health, safe water and hygiene supplies to nearly 14,000 families who have been forced to flee the fighting since January,” she revealed.
“But it remains extremely dangerous and logistically difficult for aid workers to travel to Marib. And the Houthis’ indiscriminate attacks on civilian populations puts out partners’ brave staff on the ground, who are almost all Yemeni, in constant danger. We are also hearing reports of humanitarians in Marib being detained and harassed by security forces, putting them in even more risk and further re-hampering the urgently needed scale of assistance.”
