Al Mukalla: The Yemen government has agreed to rejoin peace talks in Kuwait after a “constructive” meeting between president Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi and the United Nations (UN) Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, the Emir of Qatar and the UN Special Envoy to Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmad in Doha on Saturday.
“We have not been officially informed about [the] government’s decision to return to talks, we heard that it came in the wake of president’s meeting with Ban Ki-moon and the Emir of Qatar,” Salem Al Khanbashi, a member of the government delegation, told Gulf News from Kuwait.
Al Khanbashi said they were kept in the dark about why president Hadi changed his mind about the talks. “Foreign minister Abdul Malik Al Mikhalfi, who attended the meeting, told us he would put us in the picture about the behind-the-doors discussions in Doha when he arrives in Kuwait.”
The government delegation walked out of talks last week after the Iran-backed rebels, Al Houthi group, refused to accept the legitimacy of president Hadi and insisted on forming a unity government to deal with the country’s thorny issues like handing over arms and pulling out of cities. The government delegation threatened to boycott talks with rebels indefinitely if they did not receive a written pledge from Al Houthis that they would honour the talks’ agenda and Hadi’s authority.
Analysts say the government delegation has come under pressure from the international community to break their boycott and give the talks another chance to end the conflict. “The delegation has returned to talks after intense international pressure and direct intervention from the UN Secretary General and the Emir of Qatar. Their return to talks might be short-lived as they have yet to receive any written commitments,” Ali Al Fakih, editor of Al Masdar daily, who has recently returned from Kuwait, told Gulf News.
“This round of talks is a failure and no progress has been made,” he said.
“However, there is major international pressure to strike a deal to end the conflict,” he said.
“While there may not be a settlement anytime soon, there could be an agreement to host a fresh round of talks,” he said.
