UK welcomes appointment of new UN Special Envoy to Yemen
UK welcomes appointment of Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed as UN #Yemen Envoy & urges all parties to resume political talks
A FCO spokesman said:
“We welcome the appointment of Mr Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed as the new UN Special Envoy to Yemen, and stand ready to support him in this important role. We continue to believe that a political solution is the best way to bring long term stability to Yemen, and look forward to the UN taking a leading role in brokering political negotiations at a location acceptable to all parties. We also pay tribute to the efforts of the previous UN Special Envoy, Jamal Benomar, in support of Yemen’s political transition.
“We welcome the Saudi Arabian-led Coalition’s decision on 21 April to end Operation Decisive Storm, and look forward to the new focus under Operation Restore Hope on a return to the political process based on the Gulf Cooperation Council Initiative, the National Dialogue outcomes, and UN Security Council resolutions. We urge all parties – in particular the Houthis - to take this opportunity to return to political negotiations.
“We look forward to the Coalition’s commitment to increase opportunities for humanitarian organisations to deliver assistance to the Yemeni people. We also see freer access for commercial shipping carrying essential supplies of food and fuel as a critical next step. We continue to urge all parties to the conflict to adhere to international humanitarian law, including unfettered access for humanitarian agencies.”
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