Yemen’s Deputy Premier and Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulmalik al-Mekhlafi announced that his country’s government will send a letter to the Security Council to express its reservations on the statement the latter had issued Thursday on the Yemeni crisis, especially in regards to the role played by the legitimate government in pushing forward to reach peace and stability.

In a phone call with Asharq Al-Awsat, Mekhlafi said that the Yemeni government was counting on the issuance of a stronger statement that “identifies all errors and the management of the insurgents in some cases and refers positively to the Yemeni government.”

Mekhlafi pointed out that the government calls for more pressure to be put on Houthi and Saleh militias in this aspect to approve the new proposals of UN Envoy to Yemen that the legitimate government has welcomed earlier, “which we believe is a step to restore confidence and lead to the return to peace talks.”

“The statement as a whole, and in the circumstances under which such key statements are issued and require the consensus of the Security Council, and the discussions that were made on it can be considered positive because the Yemeni government welcomed it, although there are some reservations that the government will discuss and clarify,” Mekhlafi added.

He stressed that talks between the government and the coalition forces with the Security Council is ongoing and will not stop, and that is made through Arab countries’ representatives.

He also confirmed that talks with UN Special Envoy to Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the permanent members, and the Security Council member States on sending clear messages to the insurgents in compliance with Security Council resolutions is also ongoing.

In New York, Britain’s UN Ambassador Matthew Rycroft welcomed the Security Council statement on Yemen and said the statement was the first by the Council on Yemen for 15 months and the first to call on the parties to end violence, resume the political process, and ensure full access for humanitarian aid and workers.

Given the different national views on Yemen, he said, the council’s unity shows the level of concern about the civil war, “exacerbated by the humanitarian disaster that is unfolding.”

“This is a sign to the parties that they really must get back to a genuine, meaningful political process … to finish the conflict, and to overcome the divisions of the past — and the only way to do that is through a long-term political settlement,” Rycroft said.