Conflict in Yemen: Pakistan, Iran urge peaceful end to crisis

The two countries, however, disagree on how to achieve lasting peace in the war-ravaged country

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan and Iran agree that all stakeholders need to show ‘greater flexibility’ to resolve the conflict in Yemen peacefully — but they appear to be at odds over how to achieve peace in the country riven by a Houthi insurrection against the rule of President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi.

The Houthi rebellion is seen by Gulf states as a ‘proxy war’ of an increasingly assertive Iran that seeks to expand its sphere of influence in the region. Saudi Arabia and its allies are convinced that Tehran is fuelling the rebellion by arming and bankrolling the Houthis.

Though Riyadh wants Pakistan and Turkey to join the Saudi-led coalition to quash the Houthi rebellion, the two countries are spearheading a diplomatic initiative to broker rapprochement between Riyadh and Tehran and work out a political solution to the conflict. On Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan travelled to the Iranian capital where he met with his counterpart Hassan Rowhani.

On Wednesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif flew into Islamabad where he held detailed discussions with Sartaj Aziz, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s pointman on foreign policy matters.

Appearing before the media after their talks at the Foreign Office, the two foreign policy wizards agreed that there should be a political end to the Yemen conflict and called upon all stakeholders to show ‘greater flexibility’ to this end. However, they appeared to be at odds on how to find a negotiated solution to the deepening crisis in the Arabian Peninsula.

While the Iranian foreign minister called for an immediate ceasefire in Yemen, Aziz said a truce alone would not work. “There is a talk of a [UN] Security Council action because there is a Russian resolution which only talks about a ceasefire but they say obviously a ceasefire will only consolidate the Houthis,” Aziz argued.

“So there is a Jordanian resolution which represents the Arab point is talking of embargo on arms supplies as well as condemnation of removal of a legitimate government by force and finally some kind of disarming or giving up arms by the Houthis,” he added. In the current situation there is a need for a compromise solution that could lead to an intra-Yemen dialogue and a negotiated settlement.

But Iran’s foreign minister differed with Aziz’s assessment and suggested that there should be no preconditions. “We do not believe any preconditions are required,” Zarif said suggesting a four-pronged strategy, including a ceasefire, humanitarian assistance, an intra-Yemen dialogue and a broad-based government.

When asked, the Iran’s foreign minister said his country was prepared to use whatever influence it has over the Houthis to put an end to the conflict in Yemen. “Everybody, including Iran and Saudi Arabia, should facilitate and Iran is ready to facilitate,” he added.

Zarif said all sides should be cognizant of the fact that al Qaeda and Islamic State group were taking advantage of the current crisis in Yemen. During his two-day trip, the Iranian foreign minister expected to urge Islamabad to reject a Saudi request that it join the military operation against Houthi rebels.

Islamabad has referred the Saudi request to its parliament. But Aziz conceded that the government might not be able to get parliament’s backing for joining the Saudi-led military coalition.

“There is a broad consensus in parliament that Pakistan’s involvement in the civil war kind of situation in Yemen would not be advisable,” he admitted while giving his assessment of the ongoing proceedings of the joint session of Parliament on the matter.

He said most parliamentarians believed that Pakistan should not participate in the offensive in Yemen and instead try to mediate or facilitate a peaceful dialogue. “The government, as the prime minister has already assured, will fully respect the decision of parliament.”

Aziz and Zarif also discussed the bilateral relations, including the recent border incident in which eight Iranian security officials were killed. The Iranian foreign minister emphasized the need for working together to fight the scourge of terrorism.

Aziz said both countries agreed to further strengthen the existing mechanism to avoid incidents at the border. Pakistan assured Iran that its security agencies were actively investigating the incident, which took place on Iran’s territory.

Islamabad asked Iranian authorities to share any evidence that culprits came from Pakistan. “In case the culprits have crossed over to Pakistan after committing the crime on Iran’s soil, they will be apprehended and brought to justice.”

The visiting Iranian foreign minister will meet Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif today (Thursday) before flying back home.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 9^th, 2015.