“The Guardian” Reveals: United States Gave Green Light to Saudi Arabia to Revive Peace Agreement with Houthis

NYN | Reports and analyses:

The British newspaper The Guardian revealed that the United States has “unofficially given the green light to Saudi Arabia to attempt to revive a peace deal with the Houthis in Yemen.”

The newspaper said this is due to “Washington’s desire to keep Riyadh engaged in an anticipated peace process with Israel,” referring to the ongoing U.S.-led negotiations to normalize relations between Riyadh and Israel.

The Guardian added that “Washington appears more receptive to the Saudis’ haste to reach an agreement in Yemen, as it also needs Saudi support to end the conflict in Gaza, which opens a diplomatic avenue for it to persuade the Saudis to agree to a defense pact with the United States and normalize relations with Israel, steps that could weaken Iran’s influence in the region.”

According to the newspaper, “in return, Washington has offered incentives to convince the Houthis to stop their attacks on ships in the Red Sea, including accelerating discussions on the roadmap and lifting trade restrictions imposed on them.”

The proposed United Nations roadmap for Yemen was agreed upon in its early stages in early December last year, but according to The Guardian, progress in its implementation has stalled with the Houthis escalating their campaign in the attack on ships in the Red Sea, which they consider a “show of solidarity with the Palestinians.”

According to the newspaper, “the UN roadmap largely reflects previous secret bilateral peace talks between the Saudis and the Houthis, but this deal was never presented to the UN-backed government based in Aden.”

The newspaper added: “Saudi Arabia, with the support of the UN Special Envoy to Yemen Hans Grundberg, wants to move forward with the roadmap, even though it may lead to the payment of large sums of money to the Houthis, who will also ultimately get a permanent place in the proposed national unity government.”

In December last year, the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed the statement issued by the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy to Yemen “regarding reaching a roadmap to support the peace process.”

The Guardian said it “appears that the Houthis also want to sign the deal, whether with the UN or bilaterally with the Saudis.”