YouSaid · the spoken record

Griffiths

lines on the record: 722
first: 2018-04-17
most recent: 2023-10-18
sittings or episodes: 57
sources: un-security-council

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“I want to stress that it is not unusual for a humanitarian official, as I now am, to talk a great deal about the need for livelihoods, development funding and institutions to survive through that kind of support and assistance. Another reason that many people in Yemen cannot afford to eat is because, as I said, commodity prices are skyrocketing — not only food, which now is more than three times as expensive as before the war, but also fuel, which is four times as expensive and which, of course, has knock-on effects for other products. Prices are rising in part because the Yemeni currency, the rial, has collapsed — a disaster, of course, in a country that relies on imports. As Mr. Khiari mentioned, foreign exchange injections through the Central Bank of Yemen would help to stabilize the rial.”
2021-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8840 (2021) · source
“I think that a lot of work has been done on that, certainly by the mission but also by the United Nations Development Programme and others, with regard to how to meet those immediate needs. However, we must also take steps to boost other people’s incomes, as well, protecting remittances, for example, which are a lifeline for millions of families and constitute Yemen’s largest source of foreign exchange. There was recently a story about the possibility of remittances from Saudi Arabia being at risk, and they are, of course, a very important source of income for many people in Yemen. That means promoting economic opportunities for farmers, fishing communities and local business.”
2021-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8840 (2021) · source
“The gross domestic product has plummeted by 40 per cent since 2015, taking many jobs with it. A quarter of the population, including doctors, teachers, health professionals, social workers and water and sanitation workers, rely on civil servant salaries, which, as Council members know, are paid only sporadically, erratically and unreliably. Paying civil servant salaries, which is not a new issue but one that has been much discussed, would put money in the pockets of millions of people. It is also essential to keeping basic services running, many of which are key institutions for the humanitarian response. Therefore, we are, of course, eager to work with the parties to continue to try to find a solution to that.”
2021-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8840 (2021) · source
“If aid levels fall sharply, the risk of famine roars back. Next month, the European Union, Sweden and Switzerland will host a humanitarian event on Yemen during the high-level week of the general debate of the General Assembly. That meeting is an opportunity for the world to reiterate its commitment to addressing the crisis with new funds. However, I must be clear that even a well-funded humanitarian operation does relatively little to empower people to look after themselves, which is what most Yemenis want. The biggest challenge is the economy. Indeed, Mr. Khiari already discussed that. As Mark Lowcock often said, people in Yemen are not starving because there is no food in the country; they are starving because they cannot afford it. One reason is because incomes have dried up.”
2021-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8840 (2021) · source
“Delivering aid, as we have often discussed here, is often harder than it should be, mostly due to bureaucratic impediments. We are working with everyone to resolve those access challenges, and support from donors and Member States will continue to be crucial on that point. Naturally, we are also asking donors to increase their contributions to ensure that funds are adequately distributed across various sectors. Although the appeal is indeed, as I said, relatively well-funded relative to other appeals around the world, agencies will soon start running out of money again in certain sectors in the months to come. By October, for example, food aid will probably face cuts and programmes in other sectors, especially health, water, sanitation and shelter — I am sure that Ms. Fore will speak about that — are already struggling.”
2021-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8840 (2021) · source
“Those funds enable humanitarian partners and agencies to help 10 million people across the whole country every single month. Without that help, Yemen would, of course, succumb to famine. I should add that the majority of our partners — those humanitarian partners and agencies — are Yemeni non-governmental organizations, working in every single one of Yemen’s 333 districts, during a live war, and that is no small feat. We are also working to deepen the aid presence across the country. I should like to pay tribute here to David Gressly and his team, who have travelled to many parts of the country in recent weeks. That means more staff in field locations, more aid flights to places like Ma’rib, where we needed to build up the staff, and more road missions to front-line areas, and that is quite a change.”
2021-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8840 (2021) · source
“It is on that particular point I think the world can do more to help. Let us start with what the aid agencies are already doing. On that point, we have a good story to tell for a change. Humanitarian funding has surged since the March pledging event. I would like to thank all donors, many of them in this Chamber, that have made that happen, including major new funds announced over the past six weeks by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United States. Today the Yemen response plan — the annual humanitarian programme — is 50 per cent funded and has received more money than any other appeal in the world. It is therefore a testament to those who have advocated for the needs of the people of Yemen. I would like to thank all our donors.”
2021-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8840 (2021) · source
“That is approximately two thirds of the population, and it continues to be quite an astonishing figure. However, out of all those needs, there is perhaps one overarching humanitarian priority, and that is to stop the famine. Today, approximately 5 million people are just one step away from succumbing to famine and the diseases that go with it. Some 10 million more are right behind them. Famine is not just a food problem; it is a symptom of a much deeper collapse, as everyone knows. In many ways, it is all of Yemen’s problems rolled into one, and it demands a comprehensive response. That means, of course, providing immediate relief to the millions of people who are on the verge of famine. It also means attacking the problems that are pushing Yemen towards famine in the first place.”
2021-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8840 (2021) · source
“Institutions and public services have imploded, depriving people of clean water, sanitation, education and health care, and helping to spread diseases such as cholera and coronavirus, as we were discussing before the start of the meeting. The war has also decimated the economy. That collapse, as I will describe, if I may shortly, is perhaps the biggest driver of people’s humanitarian needs, including the risk of famine. As if all that were not enough, climate change is taking a direct and immediate toll. Rains this year have been among the heaviest ever, with more than 100,000 people affected by flooding in the past few weeks alone. The list goes on and on. More than 20 million people in Yemen need humanitarian assistance and protection.”
2021-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8840 (2021) · source
“During that time, I was repeatedly struck by the shocking brutality of the humanitarian crisis and listened carefully to the briefings of Mark Lowcock. I am therefore grateful to have an opportunity now to address those issues before the Council. There is much to address, and, in all cases, it is civilians, and, as members will hear from Ms. Fore, particularly children who bear the brunt. The war grinds on, as Mr. Khiari has described, including the devastating Ansar Allah offensive in Ma’rib and clashes along nearly 50 other front lines. Hostilities this year have so far reportedly killed or injured more than 1,200 civilians.”
2021-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8840 (2021) · source
“Mr. Griffiths: I thank Mr. Khiari for his briefing. I am very pleased to join Council members today for what is, of course, quite a familiar topic, although from a rather different point of view. This is my first outing in the Council in my new functions. I am therefore very glad it concerns Yemen. Yemen really is a magnificent country. We were talking about that just before today’s meeting started. It is home to a rich culture, amazing history, beautiful places and wonderful people. It is so much more than the war that we discuss here every month. However, after six years of war, the war overshadows everything. As Mr. Khiari mentioned, in my previous role, I had the immense privilege of trying to help Yemenis to get across that line, make peace and end the war.”
2021-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8840 (2021) · source
“For its survival and the welfare of its citizens, Yemen needs a Government that is accountable to its people and united in support of fundamental rights, and it needs an open and prosperous economy linked to the region and beyond. Every day of this war — every day that we do not get that ceasefire — the future is increasingly threatened. Let us, for the sake of Yemen, hope to end this war without delay so that we can begin the real and final battle, which is of course the battle for peace.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“Finally, for most of my time in office, I have been asking the parties to at least provide for the humanitarian needs of their people. But real leadership goes beyond looking to the immediate welfare of the people parties lead and represent to securing the rights and the future of their people. That is the real battle, and it lies ahead. My worry is not so much about the ceasefire as about the future. Let me be clear: Yemen needs a pluralistic political future, and our political process must reflect that in the most robust and inclusive way. We know very well what the people of Yemen want. There is no secret in this. It is precisely what the Security Council has always said it also wants: stability based on rights and freedom.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“My engagements with Yemeni civil society, women, local leaders and movements and youth over the past several years — almost certainly not as frequent as they should have been — are of the utmost importance to me and my colleagues. Those actors and champions for peace are the integral partners that we need to define that road map to peace in Yemen. Time is not on Yemen’s side. Over the course of the conflict, armed and political actors have multiplied and fragmented. Foreign interference has grown, not diminished. What was possible in terms of conflict resolution years ago is not possible today, and what is possible today may not be possible in future. I believe that it is possible that an international conversation or process may need to restate the realistic goals for a negotiation process.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“Yemen needs an inclusive political process, and indeed a settlement, if we are to move away from the cycles of violence and conflict that preceded this five-year war. The dialogue, which we hope will start soon, may take a long time. It will be complex and multilayered. It should help Yemenis identify the elements of a peaceful settlement. The guiding principles for that vision, as we have discussed here in the Chamber, are already clear: political partnership, accountable governance, sovereignty, economic and social justice and equal citizenship. A political settlement will need to reflect the interests of diverse conflict parties. It must guarantee the interests and rights of those most affected by the conflict and not only those who perpetuate and lead the conflict.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“Meanwhile, the polemics from social media and commentary in Yemen and from Yemen, raging against the enemy, the other, drown out the voices of those women, men and children who — as we all would — choose peace daily. What has been most frustrating during my time as Special Envoy has been the absence of comprehensive peace talks. Of course, I have emphasized time and again the primacy and importance of a political process to negotiate the core political and security issues needed to end the war and ensure peace. I am reminded this week, having visited Kuwait a few days ago, that the last time the parties sat down to discuss these issues was in Kuwait in 2016, five years ago. This is, of course, deeply shocking.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“In a lifetime of involvement in conflicts of this sort, I have learned that, while opportunities to end war and move towards peace are often present, the courage needed to avail themselves of such opportunities is much rarer. Yemen is no different. At times — and we have watched it together — leaders have come close to making that crucial choice of peace over war — to silence the guns, to start dialogue. We have seen moments of compromise and opportunity, whether in Stockholm two years ago, in prisoner exchanges — often more effective when carried out by the people themselves without our involvement — or in the de-escalation that happened from time to time on the many fronts of Yemen. But time and time again, when one side is ready to compromise, the other is not.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“Those courageous efforts are the hope and future of this wonderful and, currently, tragic country. It is our obligation to support them, listen to them and understand their leaders. I want to take a step back to focus the remainder of my remarks today on what I am trying to learn from the past three years of my assignment. Yemen is a tale of missed, and then lost, opportunities. That is not because the opportunities to escape from conflict are not frequent or evident. But I want to be clear — these are difficult decisions. Ending a war is a difficult decision requiring a confident leadership prepared to make concessions, which is always an essential part of decisions to be made to move from war to peace. This is a heavy responsibility.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“But the only way out of this quagmire is for the leadership of the Government of Yemen and the Southern Transitional Council to commit — as they did in the Riyadh agreement — to resolve their differences through dialogue now, and through political negotiations in the longer term. I know that I am painting a bleak picture, but I also want to emphasize, in contrast, the achievements of Yemenis who — as we all know and as I am sure we will hear from our briefer — work every day to open roads and release prisoners, irrespective of the status of diplomatic mediation between their leaders. Yemenis have formed alliances and carried out initiatives that span from non-partisan media platforms to mobilization, organization and activism of civil society and community safety networks.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“The war has also exacerbated divisions in the southern governorates. The situation there has come perilously close on several occasions to all-out conflict. For the sake of the peace process that we discuss here during these monthly briefings and in hope of longer- term stability, the partnership established between the Government of Yemen and the Southern Transitional Council — thanks to the exceptional and continuing efforts of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia — absolutely must continue to hold. Of course, mistrust runs deep, and there are major differences of opinion on how the future of Yemen should look.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“It allowed for the distribution of vital goods, including food, arriving through the Red Sea ports, which had previously been disrupted by volatile front lines. The Hodeidah Agreement, sealed in late 2018, also resulted in a dramatic reduction in civilian deaths and injuries by as much as 80 per cent. That is not to say that stark challenges do not persist in Al-Hudaydah. As we will hear from Lieutenant General Abhijit Guha later, ceasefire violations are a daily occurrence. In addition, not enough progress has been achieved on reactivating the joint Redeployment Coordination Committee, a critical component of ensuring the ceasefire since the suspension of the committee in March 2020, despite the tireless efforts of Lieutenant General Guha and his colleagues in the United Nations Mission to Support the Hodeidah Agreement.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“The sniping of children is one of the images that brings it home to me, and I am sure that it is shocking to all of us. These people have suffered regular shelling of their homes and schools. Schools are already difficult to access owing to landmines, which obstruct the roads that lead to schools and places of worship. There are also extraordinary impediments to get to work in order to provide a basic livelihood for families. Nobody should have to live like that, and it is a shame on all of us that agreements made in Stockholm on Taiz have yielded no results whatsoever. The Stockholm Agreement included the landmark Hodeidah Agreement, which established a ceasefire in that strategically located coastal governorate.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“It would allow for the silencing of guns, the opening of vital roads, including in Ma’rib, in Taiz and elsewhere, and a return to some sense of security for the people of Yemen, especially for civilians living near the multiple front lines in Yemen. Ma’rib, I should add, is just one of many fronts, but the loss of young lives there this past year is unconscionable. Let me also be clear that the continued closure of Sana’a airport, as well as the extensive restrictions on fuel through the ports of Al-Hudaydah, are unjustifiable and must be addressed urgently. We are already very late to do so, as Mr. Lowcock has reminded us time and again. In Taiz, a great city in the heart of Yemen, people have experienced six gruelling years of war, and we have seen many courageous accounts of the situation there from journalists.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“The Government of Yemen, on the other hand, as we know well, insisted that all those issues — the ports, the airport, the ceasefire and the launching of the political process — be agreed to and implemented as a package, in particular with a focus on getting the ceasefire started. We have offered different solutions to bridge those positions. Unfortunately, as of now, none of those suggestions have been accepted. I very much hope, as I am sure we all do, that the efforts undertaken by the Sultanate of Oman in particular, as well as others, following my own visits to Sana’a and Riyadh will bear fruit and that we will soon see a different turn of fate for Yemen. I want to stress — as if it needed to be stressed — that a nationwide ceasefire would have undeniable humanitarian value: it is a humanitarian act to agree to start a ceasefire.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“Let me clearly reiterate to the members of the Council the positions of the parties, as I understand them, for the benefit of the historical record, if nothing else. Ansar Allah is insisting on a stand-alone agreement on the Al-Hudaydah ports and Sana’a airport as a condition precedent for the ceasefire and the launch of the political process. Indeed, in my recent and useful meeting with Ansar Allah leader Abdelmalik Al-Houthi in Sana’a, he said to me that only after an agreement on ports and the airport were implemented would Ansar Allah begin negotiations on the ceasefire. That was not enough.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“I want to thank the members of the Council — united in the purpose they have displayed on Yemen — and in particular the United States as well as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Sultanate of Oman and others, for their tireless diplomatic support and the considerable diplomatic firepower that is engaged in support of our efforts in this latest round of mediation. There has been no lack of will or effort. In that context, allow me to turn to the current negotiations. As members know, for the past year and a half, I have conducted rounds of shuttle diplomacy with the parties on issues that I have often described to the Council and need not repeat here today. It is with deep regret that today I report that, as of now, the parties have not overcome their differences.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“The parties to the conflict need to be courageous enough and willing to choose that path over the continuation of the conflict. Over the past three years of my assignment in Yemen, we have put many opportunities to the parties, but in vain. A mediator is not responsible for the war or for the peace. His, or her, privilege is not to have the power to end the war, despite a common assumption to the contrary. The mediator’s privilege is to present to the parties the ways the war can end — and again, in this case, so far, in vain.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“Yemeni men, women and children are suffering every day because people with power have missed the opportunities presented to them to make the necessary concessions to end the war. As a result, Yemenis are obliged to live under violence, insecurity and fear, with limits to their freedom of movement and freedom of expression. Perhaps most tragically, we are witness to the hopes and aspirations of a generation of young Yemenis for a peaceful future being dashed. No amount of humanitarian assistance can compensate for the prospect of a brighter future. Only a negotiated political settlement can truly turn the tide in Yemen. A political settlement that ends the war and ushers in a just and sustainable peace is what is needed.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“Mr. Griffiths: I want to thank you, Mr. President, and all the members of the Security Council for the privilege that I have had serving as the Secretary- General’s Special Envoy for Yemen over the past three years. This will be my last briefing to the Council in this capacity. I would like to add that I am also particularly grateful to President Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi Mansour for placing his trust in me in this assignment. The United Nations has long characterized Yemen as the world’s worst man-made humanitarian crisis, as we have so vividly heard from Mark Lowcock over these many months. I want to underline the “man- made” part of that statement. Ending a war is a choice.”
2021-06-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8797 (2021) · source
“I remind us all of the extraordinary record in the national dialogue in Yemen of such participation, when Yemen was an icon of female participation in national dialogues. Finally, I want to refer, perhaps a bit eccentrically, to the issue of education. I refer to it not, perhaps, purely as humanitarian but as an illustration of the costs of war. I was prompted to say this to you, Sir, and to the Council through reading about one particular school in Taiz where the children risk their lives to go to school and yet go there; where they go to school where there are few, if any, materials; where the teachers, I am sure, have rarely been paid and yet go there. This struggle to continue an education for the next generation is remarkable; we see it in every conflict, and we are seeing it in Yemen.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“They do this against all odds, with a courage we can only imagine, and often under circumstances that threaten their lives, their livelihoods and their families. On this anniversary, I would remind all parties to the conflict in Yemen to take special measures to protect women and girls and human rights defenders from all kinds of violence and threats. I hope that they will, as we will, heed the consistent calls of Yemeni women, as I said, heard just yesterday once again in Riyadh for a just and equitable peace – not just a peace, but a just and equitable peace. I call on them to strengthen the meaningful participation of women, including by ensuring at least 30 per cent representation in their negotiating delegations.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“I will not repeat what Mark and I have said on numerous occasions to the Council about the vital importance of the United Nations, through the United Nations Office for Project Services, being granted permission to assess and undertake urgent initial repairs of the tanker. We all know what is at stake. The people in Yemen know what is at stake, and it is more urgent by the day. Twenty years ago, the Council adopted resolution 1325 (2000), the landmark resolution on women and peace and security recognizing women’s contributions to peace as well as the disproportionate effects of armed conflict on women and girls. In Yemen, as in all such situations, women have worked tirelessly, mostly behind the scenes and always below the radar, to stop the war, reduce violence, release detainees and build back peace.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“The Government of Yemen has in the past day or so cleared a number of fuel ships to enter Al-Hudaydah this week, which is a positive step. But a mutually agreed solution is needed. We have been working with the parties for months, frankly, to agree a set of arrangements that will ensure the uninterrupted flow of fuel into and around Ansar-Allah-controlled areas to allow essentially for the flow of humanitarian assistance to reach the people who need it. I urge the parties to please engage with me on the current proposals in front of them to make this happen. Secondly, with respect to the SAFER oil tanker, I acknowledge the positive public message from Sana’a on this matter in recent days, and I express my gratitude therefor.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“Such a solution should bring together all stakeholders — including, particularly but not only, civil society and women’s groups, famously active in Taiz — to contribute to reconciliation, to cross-line efforts, to protecting schools, to allowing workers to go to work and trade to resume at least a small part of the life of those communities and thus to alleviating the suffering. That is of great importance. I want to turn to two other issues that require urgent action to prevent even more widespread suffering in Yemen. I know, and as we will hear from Mark, that the fuel shortages in Ansar-Allah-controlled areas are having evidently detrimental impacts on the civilian population. Prices are rising, and vital services are being affected.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“The Mission and I, in their support, have engaged extensively with both sides and issued public calls to stop the fighting, following which the situation now seems tense but calm. I hope that the parties will sustain this calm and avoid putting the local population at further risk, as well as threatening the validity and continuation of the Hodeidah Agreement. I want to comment today on the situation in Taiz, an historic place in Yemen, as members know, that has experienced far too much suffering. It has been a battlefield these many years, and the people living there have lived in that war zone all this time. A solution is desperately needed for Yemen, but a solution is also needed to unlock the impasse among the various forces — and there are a number of them — in Taiz.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“While my colleagues in the United Nations Mission to Support the Hodeidah Agreement, continue their efforts to reactivate the Redeployment Coordination Committee and the joint mechanisms contained in the resolution to implement the Hodeidah Agreement, the military situation in the city and the governorate has recently deteriorated significantly since my last briefing (see S/PV.8757). During the first week of October, clashes in the south of Al-Hudaydah, particularly in Durayhimi and Hays districts, developed into some of the most intense fighting since the signing of the Stockholm agreement in December 2018. We understand that this caused many, many civilian casualties, as well as those among combatants.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“The war economy threatens the national economy, creating financial incentives for those who want to continue fighting. Interference from outside the country grows as opportunities present themselves. And in Yemen, as elsewhere, the longer the conflict goes on, not only does the suffering of the people continue, but it also makes it harder to reverse the circumstances in which they live. On the military front, the intensity of the fighting in Ma’rib —we have often discussed the campaign in Ma’rib — has decreased in recent days. This is important, but the situation remains volatile, and I reiterate my call for the attacks on Ma’rib to cease completely and immediately. Allow me also to express my concern about the situation in Al-Hudaydah.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“In Riyadh yesterday I met a group of Yemeni women, mostly from the south, who confirmed again — as we always hear, every time, in meetings with civil society and women’s groups — that enough is enough. This war has gone on years longer than it needed to. I cannot stress enough through you, Sir, and through the Council, the need for the parties to act with a sense of urgency to conclude the negotiation on this joint declaration. What we have learned from the Yemen conflict — and perhaps it is a general proposition — is that, as time goes on in such internal conflicts, resolution becomes more difficult. Actors fragment and multiply. State institutions, of course, erode. The conflict becomes more entrenched and more the new normal.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“The mediator, myself, has become the negotiator. The meetings have been mostly virtual due to coronavirus disease restrictions, and the parties have not yet met face to face to discuss the joint declaration. We know now that virtual means may take us a long way, but they still do not replace the necessity of parties negotiating with each other to understand the commitments they will make to each other. This is what made the prisoner meeting so important and, I hope, such a precedent. The primary goal of the joint declaration is to end what I call the shooting war and to open the gateway to peace. Resuming this process, as I have just said, is an imperative and, frankly, an obligation for the people of Yemen.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“The joint declaration is an ambitious set of agreements, as President Hadi pointed out to me, which covers, as members know, a nationwide ceasefire, economic and humanitarian measures and the resumption of the political process — perhaps the most important of the three. So, I do understand the reasons why the parties take their time to cross that crucial line. Negotiations have been conducted, after all, in the midst of a global pandemic. We started in March, as Council members will remember, as a result of the Secretary-General’s call for global ceasefire and subsequent call for ceasefire in Yemen. In the midst of a global pandemic and lockdown, and while the war raged, perhaps even more ferociously, across the battlefields of Yemen, the negotiations have been conducted solely through shuttle diplomacy.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“I should also like to take note today of the return yesterday of injured Yemenis to Sana’a, who had gone to Oman for medical treatment around the time of the Stockholm talks in 2018. This is very good news for those who are finally returning home. My Office continues to negotiate the agreement between the parties on a joint declaration. Both parties remain engaged in those negotiations, but they have yet to agree a final text. I would like to say that I am neither surprised nor, frankly, discouraged by this. We are, in fact, asking a lot from the parties. I have just returned from a visit to Riyadh myself, where I had very useful and extensive meetings with the Government of Yemen, of course, and President Hadi, as well as the leadership of the Arab coalition. Now, I am not surprised. I am not discouraged. We are asking a lot.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“Indeed, the first time I met President Hadi, this was the first topic that he raised with me — the need for all prisoners to be released. I would also like to reiterate my call on the parties to unconditionally and immediately release all arbitrarily detained civilians, including journalists and political prisoners. Here, I pay tribute to the Yemeni activists, actors and civil society organizations that have determinately, continuously and, many times, successfully, in situations of peril, advocated for the release of civilians and for uncovering the fates of the forcibly disappeared. We hope, of course, that the implementation of disagreement will build confidence and, indeed, momentum by demonstrating a simple truth — that peaceful dialogue and negotiation between the parties can deliver the road back to peace.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“More importantly perhaps, I commend the parties. We know that their respective leaderships stepped up to the plate and made the commitments necessary to send their delegations to Switzerland for the talks and, during the period of the negotiation, to negotiate constructively and successfully at length, day and night, to reach the agreement concerning those more than 1,000 individuals. Of course, this prisoners’ agreement does not include many thousands more Yemenis detained during the course of this conflict and it is therefore our obligation and the obligation of the parties to convene very soon to discuss further releases, in line with the commitment that they made in Stockholm in December 2018 to release all conflict-related prisoners and detainees.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“Indeed, I understand that it is the largest such operation of its kind in the history of the conflict in Yemen. As the Council may imagine, I am personally very grateful to the International Committee of the Red Cross and its President, Peter Maurer, for working with us to reach that agreement and, in addition, for so diligently and expeditiously working on the implementation of the agreement — itself a densely complicated task. I want to thank the Swiss Government for hosting the meeting to which I have referred in a supportive environment, especially at a time when face-to-face meetings are so difficult to organize. I would also like to take this opportunity, unusually, to congratulate my deputy, Mr. Muin Shreim, for his persistence and his mediation in reaching that agreement. I am very grateful to him, as are all of us in our mission.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“Mr. Griffiths: I thank you, Mr. President, for this opportunity to brief the Security Council. I would like to start with an unusual comment in saying that we have some good news in Yemen today. As you probably know, since this morning, the skies of Yemen have seen what I like to refer to as an airlift of hope. The parties have started releasing prisoners and detainees following the agreement that they reached in Switzerland on 27 September. That process will lead to the release of more than 1,000 individuals, all returning to their families. That will bring immense relief and comfort to all those families who have waited so long to be reunited, as well as to other families, close relations, friends and members of their communities. That is an extraordinary number to be released during the conduct of hostilities.”
2020-10-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8770 (2020) · source
“I want to close by emphasizing that, although, as I have said perhaps rather boringly before, the situation is very dire, the parties can choose to either continue this trajectory of escalating violence or to make the compromises necessary to revive the political process and allow for a political settlement. These choices are clear and evident and in the hands of the parties. The United Nations and the members of the Council must and, I am sure, will do everything possible to push for and support the latter outcome. We play a supporting role. The outcome lies in the hands of the parties. We are there and we will watch with the people of Yemen to see what choices they make and how they may swiftly be implemented.”
2020-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8757 (2020) · source
“We have been engaging with various groups and will continue with respect to the joint declaration negotiations, and discussing in detail plans to ensure their meaningful inclusion in a future political process, which we hope will not be long off. Also, as part of these inclusion efforts, we are organizing a skills-building workshop with the Yemeni Women’s Technical Advisory Group — I think we have discussed their role and significance in this Chamber before — but we have also stepped up our engagement with the Group of Nine women’s organizations to seek their inputs in our joint declaration. In that regard, I want to pay specific tribute here to the close relationship that we continue to enjoy with UN-Women, for which we are very grateful.”
2020-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8757 (2020) · source
“I want to emphasize the vital role of Yemeni civil society in demanding an end to the conflict. They truly are champions of peace. Civil society has also vocally advocated for measures to bring relief to the population, including recently in a very marked way the release of prisoners and detainees. Civil society’s role is central in maintaining the pressure for a peaceful resolution needed in every conflict, including in Yemen. It has provided analysis, ideas and language on issues of importance to Yemenis — from public service delivery to economic reform to peacebuilding — not only to my Office, but to all of us who are interested in improving the circumstances and prospects of Yemen.”
2020-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8757 (2020) · source
“I would also like to report that, if logistical arrangements permitting, which are always complicated in Yemen and even more so now at the time of the pandemic, we expect to see the parties this week in Switzerland to continue their discussions on the implementation of prisoner exchanges, under the joint auspices of my Office and the International Committee of the Red Cross, to which I pay tribute for its work on that project. The parties committed to releasing conflict-related prisoners and detainees back in 2018 in Stockholm and furthered their discussions to fulfil that commitment in Amman earlier this year. I hope this meeting will actually result in the release of some prisoners and some evidence of the implementation of those commitments, particularly given the threat of COVID-19 in places of detention.”
2020-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8757 (2020) · source
“As I am sure Mark will discuss, this has the potential to seriously impact the United Nations operations, as well as the operations of other humanitarian agencies in that part of Yemen providing critical assistance, which may be thus prevented from entering Sana’a. We, the Council and ourselves together, need to also remain focused on ensuring the earliest possible arrival of the United Nations technical mission to assess the FSO SAFER oil tanker in the ports of Al-Hudaydah. I know that we will be hearing more from Mark on that issue.”
2020-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8757 (2020) · source