Kuwait: The Yemeni government delegation is to rejoin UN-brokered peace talks in Kuwait with Al Houthi militants who control the capital, ending a four-day boycott, the UN special envoy said on Sunday.
The hard-won negotiations on ending a conflict that has killed more than 6,400 people and driven 2.8 million from their homes since March last year have been stalled several times since they opened on April 21.
UN envoy Esmail Ould Shaikh Ahmad said that President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi had agreed to end the latest boycott after mediation by UN chief Ban Ki-moon and Qatari Emir Shaikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani.
Hadi received assurances from the UN regarding the applicability of UN Security Council Resolution 2216.
The Yemeni government delegation had baulked at discussing rebel proposals for a unity government.
They insist that the talks should focus instead on enforcing an April 2015 UN Security Council resolution demanding the rebels’ withdrawal from the capital and other territories they have overran since 2014.
Foreign Minister Abdul Malek Al Mikhlafi said on Twitter that the government had agreed to give the peace talks a “last chance.” He also said there were regional and international guarantees for commitment to the six points of reference of the talks.
“The decision delivers a clear message to the Yemeni people and the international community about the seriousness of the government in its quest for peace and stability,” Al Mikhlafi stressed.“We have fixed all the references. This is a first step on the path for a real peace that leads to implementing Resolution 2216 beginning with withdrawals, surrender of weapons and the restoration of state institutions,” he said.
It remains unclear whether the government delegation will relax its previous demands.
