President Joe Biden announced an end to U.S. support for Saudi-led offensive work in Yemen, revealing that the new administration is planning a more active U.S. role in efforts to end on the country’s civil war.
“This war must end.” And to underline our commitment, we are ending all American support for offensive work in the war in Yemen, including the sale of relevant weapons, ”the U.S. president said in speech at the Department of State.
“At the same time,” he said on Thursday, “there are missile attacks, UAV (drone) strikes and other threats from troops deployed in Iran in several countries. We are going to continue to support and assist Saudi Arabia in protecting its sovereignty and territorial integrity and its people. “
Saudi Arabia welcomed Biden’s comments, especially his commitment to defending the country and addressing threats against it.
Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud welcomed cooperation with the Biden administration to resolve issues in the region, not to mention his decision to end support for efforts Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia welcomes the United States’ commitment, expressed in President Biden’s speech today, to work with the United Kingdom to improve its security and its territory. defense, “the foreign minister said said on Twitter
Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Minister of Defense, Prince Khalid bin Salman, confirmed the same sentiment in a series of tweets late Thursday. “As we have been for over seven decades, we look forward to working with our friends in the U.S. to address these challenges,” he said.
The termination of U.S. support for the culprit will not affect any U.S. action against al-Qaeda, based in Yemen on the Arabian peninsula, or AQAP, a group, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said.
Yemen’s civil war has claimed tens of thousands of lives, including large numbers of civilians, and created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis [Hani Mohammed/AP Photo]
Biden also announced the choice of Timothy Lenderking as special ambassador to Yemen, a move that also welcomed Saudi Arabia’s deputy foreign minister.
Lenders have extensive experience dealing with Yemen and the Gulf. He has served as deputy secretary of state for Gulf affairs and served at the U.S. embassy in Riyadh.
Yemen ‘s turnover is one of a series of changes Biden issued Thursday that he said would be part of a course correction for U.S. foreign policy. It comes after President Donald Trump – and some Republican and Democratic administrations before him – often backed authoritarian leaders abroad in the name of sustainability.
The news of Yemen fulfills a campaign promise. But it also shows Biden stressing the great humanitarian crisis the United States has helped alleviate. The return of policy also comes as a retaliation to Saudi Arabia, a global oil giant and US strategic partner.
Sullivan on Thursday reaffirmed Biden’s pledge, made during the 2020 primary campaign, to suspend U.S. support for Saudi Arabia’s military campaign in Yemen, including ending arms agreements.
“It extends to the types of offensive operations that have waged civil war in Yemen that have led to a humanitarian crisis,” Sullivan said. “The types of examples of that include two sales an army of precision-controlled armored weapons that stopped the president from advancing at the end of the last administration. “
Sullivan said the U.S. has spoken to senior officials in Saudi Arabia and its alliance with the United Arab Emirates as part of a “no-frills policy with these actions so that they understand that this is happening and that they understand our reasoning and our philosophy for it. . “
Many Yemeni activists identified the Biden administration’s decision as a possible end to the war, but some analysts warned that the implementation of a foreign policy move on the ground remains to be seen.
“US aid will not automatically end the war. There is a fair balance to be struck here, in finding a way to end the war that militant, political, local and civil society groups can buy into. It’s not easy at all, ”said Peter Salisbury, Yemen’s senior analyst at Crisis Group, on Twitter.
The Yemeni civil war sets the internationally recognized government against the Houthi movement linked to Iran. The conflict claimed tens of thousands of lives, involving large numbers of civilians, and created the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.
A Saudi-led coalition joined the government in March 2015 and enjoyed the support of the Trump administration, with the war escalating as a proxy conflict between the US and Iran.
But the growing number of civilian deaths and the growing humanitarian crisis – the United Nations estimates that 80 per cent of 24 million people in Yemen are needed – are encouraging bipartisan demands for a halt to U.S. support for Riyadh.
The Human Rights Guard said in its 2021 World Report published in January that the parties to the Yemeni military conflict continued to violate war laws in 2020, including the commission of new war crimes .
HRW said the coalition led by Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as well as Houthi forces, launched mortars, rockets and missiles into densely populated areas.
“The coalition also built more airfields that violated laws of war, attacked civilians and civilian structures, and used weapons purchased from the United States, France, Canada, and other countries, “HRW said.
In 2020, the United Nations Agency of Distinguished Experts called on Yemen on the UN Security Council to take the situation in Yemen to the International Criminal Court, and to create an international accountability mechanism.
Joe Biden names special ambassador to Yemen as the State Department reviews last month’s Trump administration’s designation of the Houthi group linked to Iran as a foreign ‘terrorist’ group [Tom Brenner/Reuters]
The UN has been struggling to start peace talks between the government and the Houthis, an effort that is likely to be tasked with promoting a loan.
Biden’s decision to name a special ambassador comes as the State Department reviews last month’s Trump administration’s designation of the Houthi group linked to Iran as a foreign ‘terrorist’ group.
The U.S. last week agreed all matters relating to Yemen’s Houthi move for next month while it conducted its review. But the UN is still hearing concerns that companies plan to shut down or shut down business with Yemen despite the move.
The DA and aid agencies have called for the reversal of the designation, warning it would push Yemen into starvation.