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Iran ready to cooperate with Saudi Arabia to settle Yemen crisis

Politics Materials 1 April 2015 10:48 (UTC +04:00)
The Islamic Republic seeks to cooperate with Saudi Arabia to put an end to ongoing civil war in Yemen, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, Iran’s deputy foreign minister for Arab and African affairs said.
Iran ready to cooperate with Saudi Arabia to settle Yemen crisis

Baku, Azerbaijan, April 1

By Umid Niayesh - Trend:

The Islamic Republic seeks to cooperate with Saudi Arabia to put an end to ongoing civil war in Yemen, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, Iran's deputy foreign minister for Arab and African affairs said.

He further said that Iran has a proposal on the issue, without disclosing more details.

The Iranian diplomat also asked opposing sides in Yemen to stop the clashes and return to the negotiation table, Fars news agency reported.

He expressed Tehran's concerns over the Saudi-led coalition's air strikes against the Houthi rebels in Yemen, adding the Islamic Republic makes all necessary efforts to end the conflicts in the Arab country.

Military operations should be halted immediately for achieving a political solution, Amir Abdollahian underlined.

An international military operation kicked off on March 26 in Yemen against Iran-backed Shiite group- Ansarullah, with involvement of the armed forces of a number of Arab states led by Saudi Arabia.

Iran denies accusations that it gives military assistance to the Shiite group.

Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi managed to escape Sanaa and house arrest at the hands of the Shiite rebels on Feb. 21. Houthi Shiite rebels have taken control of several cities and are assaulting the port of Aden, where Hadi had been based before fleeing to Riyadh.

The Islamic Republic has sent five aid cargo shipments to Yemen so far.

The first Iranian flight landed in Sanaa on March 1, a day after officials from the Shia-controlled city signed an aviation agreement with Tehran.

Senior political and military officials in Tehran confirm that the country's influence is spreading in Yemen.

Last December, Deputy Commander of Iran's IRGC, Hussein Salami said that the Yemeni Ansarullah group moves in accordance with the Islamic Revolution (1979) within Iran's geopolitical space. In his similar statements, Iran's former foreign minister, Ali Akbar Velayati said mid-December that the Islamic Republic's current influence spreads from Yemen to Lebanon.

Follow the author on Twitter: @UmidNiayesh

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