Iran FM welcomes Yemen reconciliation deal

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has welcomed the landmark political reconciliation deal between Yemeni government and the opposition in the country.

At a Thursday meeting with Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khalid Al Hamad Al Sabah on the sidelines of the 69th UN General Assembly meeting in New York, Zarif called on all the Yemeni political factions to exercise restraint and adhere to the provisions of their new political agreement.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran considers tranquility and continuation of national dialogue in line with the national interests of the Yemeni nation and government,” he said.

On Sunday, representatives of the Ansarullah movement, which leads the opposition, and the government signed a deal in the presence of the UN Special Adviser on Yemen, Jamal Benomar, and Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi at the presidential palace in the capital, Sana’a.

Benomar said the deal calls for the establishment of a government of technocrats within a month.

The Yemeni protesters have hailed the agreement as a great achievement. They say the deal would hopefully, in the long run, put an end to their grievances.

Ansarullah activists, also known as Houthis, have been staging demonstrations in the capital for more than a month, demanding the formation of a new government.

The Iranian foreign minister and his Kuwaiti counterpart also discussed the bilateral issues and regional developments and reviewed the implementation of mutual agreements reached during the June visit by Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah to Iran.

The two sides also underlined the need to continue the current positive interactions to consolidate bilateral ties and facilitate regional cooperation.