American website: Slow talks may push the Houthis and Saudi Arabia into a new round of war

English - Sunday 21 May 2023 الساعة 04:53 pm
Sana'a, NewsYemen, exclusive:

While US President Joe Biden's statements are still being circulated in the international media about his administration's intention to end the war in Yemen, the American website "The Intercept" published an analysis by journalist Ryan Grimm, in which he accused the Biden administration of pushing "effectively" for the resumption of the war.

Grimm said, "The Yemen war can end if Biden wants it," recalling in the context John Lennon's famous saying: "The war is over if you want it to end." And he added that this is the case of the war in Yemen, but the United States of America is deliberately slowing down the pace of Saudi peace talks with the Houthi militia in order to push for the next round of war.

He added that all parties directly or indirectly involved in the war in Yemen - Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the Houthis, China, Oman, Qatar, Jordan, and others - want to put the war behind them, but the United States does not want that because its allies are in a position to Bad negotiator.

The analysis indicated that reading between the lines of US policy and its movements in recent times indicates that the Biden administration is deliberately slowing down the course of the talks, and that the Houthis are impatient and may resume hostilities, which would unleash another bombing campaign led by Saudi Arabia that could win allies. The United States offers better terms when it comes to controlling the strategically located Yemeni coast, where the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden connect the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea in the southwestern corner of Yemen, an area of geopolitical importance for the flow of oil and international traffic so that the United States has one of the largest Its bases are in Djibouti, across the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

The journalist, the author of the analysis, cited what he described as pessimistic comments by the US envoy to Yemen, Timothy Lenderking, on the talks between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, as he said on his recent visit to Saudi Arabia: "I do not expect a permanent solution - and we should not expect - to end overnight the conflict that has been going on for nearly Eight years in Yemen... The political process will take time and will likely face many setbacks, but I remain optimistic that we have a real chance for peace." The analysis considered that when deciphering diplomacy in the commentary, “the most important observation is the prediction of ‘many setbacks’ and the confidence that we ‘should not’ expect a ‘permanent solution’.”

The journalist continued his analysis of the current situation in Yemen in American politics, stating that the Biden administration continues to press for the formation of an "inclusive government," noting that this is the same phrase that America used with Afghanistan. He said that the chief US envoy to the Arab region, "Axios", recently made joint statements with Lenderking in Riyadh that the United States supports Saudi Arabia's right to defend itself against any threats from Yemen or from anywhere else, and that US officials stressed "the need to achieve integration." and broader regional stability through a combination of diplomacy, deterrence, investment and new infrastructure,” a mixture included in the updated US strategy in the Middle East announced by US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan in early May.

In the context of the analysis, journalist Ryan Grimm cited a statement by US State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel, in which he opposed the journalist's hypothesis that America is against peace talks in Yemen, and that his government is committed to strengthening the UN-sponsored armistice and continues to focus on "assisting the parties in securing a new and more comprehensive agreement." 

The analysis stated that for their political survival, the Houthis need the lifting of the blockade, but only if the talks continue for a long time. They are likely to resume cross-border strikes, and all sides know that.