Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the United Nations, Abdullah Al-Mouallimi, yesterday said that his country does not want war with Iran and that the time to end the war in Yemen has come.

“We do not want war with Iran in Yemen or elsewhere,” Al-Mouallimi said, “it is high time that the war in Yemen should end and the Houthis should accept UN resolution 2216 by ending their illegitimate occupation of power in Yemen,” Anadolu reported.

In the presence of Yemeni representative Abdullah Al-Saadi, the Arab League, the Emirati Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN and a representative of the Bahraini delegation on behalf of the Arab Group, Al-Mouallimi handed a copy of the decisions taken at the Arab Summit in Makkah to the UN chief.

Arabs recently held a summit in Saudi Arabia to discuss Iran’s behaviour through its agents in Yemen, Lebanon and elsewhere, as well as its direct involvement in recent events in the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

Al-Mouallimi noted that the Arab envoys stressed to the UN chief that Iran must end this behaviour, which constitutes a provocation not only in the Gulf but also in Bab El-Mandeb – a strategic strait between Yemen and the Arabian Peninsula – and the Red Sea region.

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The ambassador noted that UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres had appreciated his reaching out to him, adding that he would meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to discuss their mutual concerns.

Regarding diplomatic initiatives with Iran, Al-Sharq Al-Awsat reported Al-Mouallimi as saying that the time is always suitable for reconciliation, adding however that diplomacy needs common ground based on international law and treaties that include non-interference in other countries’ affairs.

Al-Mouallimi appreciated international condemnations of Houthi attacks on civilian targets in Saudi Arabia, however, he asserted that the implementation of Security Council resolutions, including resolutions calling for the arms embargo on the Houthis, is required and needed.

Replying to a question about his country’s support for China in its aggression against Uyghurs Muslims, he said: “No country is concerned about Muslims around the world more than Saudi Arabia.”

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