Yemen Monitor/Sana’a/Exclusive:
A US diplomat has said that a political process that gradually legitimizes the Houthis is the most viable way to address the underlying factors that led to the Houthi maritime attacks.
Alison Minor, deputy US special envoy to Yemen, said in a new article: “The alternative to a UN political process is a failed state scenario.”
She noted that “this could provide the conditions for an economic recovery that would boost economic cooperation with Yemen’s wealthy neighbors.”
US envoy to Yemen Tim Lenderking said this week that the political process in Yemen cannot be achieved without the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.
She pointed out that “such a recovery process would provide strong incentives to deter the Houthis from using force in the region.”
The US diplomat says that this potential can only be realized if it is coupled with a unified and principled international stance on Houthi attacks on maritime shipping.
She added: “In the absence of this, the Houthis could use the threat of attacks to gradually extract greater concessions, while at the same time isolating Yemen and depriving it of the international economic support needed for recovery.”
She said: “For this to succeed, the entire UN Security Council will need to quietly but clearly clarify its red lines for Houthi attacks and be prepared to stick to them. This means imposing severe consequences if the Houthis fail to meet their commitments.”
The US diplomat continued: “The political process would expand the tools available to the Security Council, including through its ability to set conditions for lifting Chapter VII sanctions against the Houthis.”
“Minor” continued: “A political process that gradually legitimizes the Houthis is unattractive to many American policymakers, but it also represents the most viable way to address the underlying factors that led to the Houthi attacks and shift incentives away from continued use of force.”
Diplomatic sources told “Yemen Monitor” on Wednesday that there were intensive diplomatic moves between Riyadh and Muscat to break the deadlock in a UN-led political process to bring about direct consultations between the Houthis and the internationally recognized Yemeni government to end a decade-long war.
Since November, the Houthis have targeted more than 60 commercial ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, and recently expanded their operations to the Indian Ocean. They said they were targeting ships linked to Israel, which is waging a brutal onslaught on Gaza Strip. But the Yemeni government and experts say the Houthis’ goals are domestic to escape internal crises and improve their image in the region.
In response, the US and Britain have been carrying out an air campaign against the Iranian-backed Houthi armed group since January 11. As a result, the Houthis have announced the expansion of their operations to include US and British ships.
