Statement by Permanent Representative Vassily Nebenzia at a UNSC Briefing on Yemen
Mr. President,
We are grateful to Mr. Hans Grundberg, Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Yemen, and to Mr. Thomas Fletcher, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, for their briefings. We have also carefully listened to the representative of civil society Dina El-Mamoun.
The Security Council closely followed the nearly two-month-long standoff between the United States and the Yemeni movement Ansar Allah. According to media reports, the number of those who died exceeded two hundred people, another several hundred were wounded. Almost every night, the United States carried out missile strikes and bombings on the territory of sovereign Yemen. The strikes targeted not only military facilities but also civilian infrastructure. This confrontation affected Russia as well – as a result of the US strike on the port of Ras Isa on April 25, three Russian sailors were injured, one of them subsequently had to undergo a major medical surgery.
And yet, we cannot say that such actions by Washington were effective in terms of suppressing the military capabilities of Ansar Allah, nor did they force the movement to abandon its course of action. In this regard, we cannot but recall the failure of the team of the previous US President Joe Biden, who also waged war against the Houthis for more than a year, which proved to be unsuccessful.
The sole outcome of the lengthy bombardment of Yemen was an even more precipitous degradation of the already dire humanitarian situation in the country – the situation is almost back to the 2022 level, which was the acute phase of the Yemeni conflict. Against this backdrop, many relevant NGOs were forced to cease their activities and leave Yemen, which is especially tangible given that the UN has suspended its humanitarian operations in some regions of the country. A catastrophic blow was dealt to the infrastructure that was used for humanitarian purposes, including the port of Hodeidah, which served as a conduit for the lion's share of humanitarian shipments. These developments, along with the hitherto unresolved issue of UN and other organizations’ personnel detained by the Houthis, may become another factor seriously complicating humanitarian work in this country. And yet the effectiveness of this work is what the lives and well-being of ordinary Yemenis directly hinge on.
Nevertheless, as the saying goes, better late than never. Washington appears to have finally acknowledged the futility of a military approach, which we have pointed out time and again. This is evidenced by the agreement to end the confrontation, which was reached between the United States and the Houthis just the other day through the mediation of the Omani authorities. This could have been the first step towards a general de-escalation of the situation surrounding Yemen. But, regrettably, this is not yet the case, because by now Israel has taken up the relay bombing Yemen. We understand that actions by West Jerusalem are largely a response to the strikes on its territory by the Houthis. However, the reaction should be commensurate. We call on Israel to exercise restraint and refrain from taking aggressive steps against Yemen in order to avoid heightened tension and the risk of a large-scale conflict in the region. The vicious circle of violence must finally be broken. And this must be done at the scale of the entire Middle East region.
Although we do not justify the actions of Ansar Allah, we should bear in mind that they, in turn, are a response to the continued suffering of civilians in the Gaza Strip, primarily due to the resumed humanitarian blockade of the enclave by the Israeli authorities and the ongoing hostilities there. Through their actions, the Houthis have secured the support of the “Arab Street”, since the people, like the overwhelming majority of UN Security Council members, understand perfectly well that the only way to end the suffering of Palestinian civilians is through establishing an unconditional, sustainable and long-term ceasefire in the Strip. This is precisely the priority objective for us to focus on. We discussed it in great detail yesterday at a briefing on the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Resolving this issue will make Israel safe from further strikes by the Houthis.
Mr. President,
We remain disquieted by the gradually intensifying internal conflict in Yemen. The warring parties are reported to increasingly engage in armed incidents along the contact line. Despite the efforts by the official Yemeni authorities, the domestic economic situation remains complicated.
We call on all Yemeni parties to immediately halt the use of force and to abandon bellicose rhetoric and unilateral actions, which in no way advance a sustainable normalization in the country. Instead, they are well-advised to pursue dialogue so as to find a solution that would rule out any further bloodshed.
Mr. President,
In the current volatile environment, external actors should redouble their efforts to swiftly resume an inclusive negotiation process with the participation of all Yemeni political forces. What is also needed is engaging with them on the most pressing settlement issues, including the exchange of prisoners of war. We see no alternative to a comprehensive political process under the UN auspices on the basis of the prior agreements, as set forth in the relevant road map. Only thus can we get the inter-Yemeni normalization back on track.
In light of this, we call on Special Envoy Grundberg to be more active. It is necessary to look for possible common ground among the parties, so as to guide them towards mutually acceptable solutions. For our part, we will continue to provide the Special Envoy with all possible assistance and we call on all responsible members of the international community to do the same.
Thank you.
