New York, NY, March 15, 2018 — The latest UN Security Council Presidential Statement on Yemen does not do enough to revitalize the beleaguered Yemen peace process and secure a political resolution to the war. The IRC is calling on the UK, as the country responsible for Yemen in the Council, to lead UN efforts to resolve the disaster in Yemen.
Responding to the statement by the President of the Security Council on Yemen, Amanda Catanzano, IRC’s Senior Director of International Programs Policy and Advocacy said: “The humanitarian focus of the statement is important, but it does not reflect the urgency of the deteriorating situation in Yemen, where 22 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance and 8 million are on the brink of famine.
"Full and sustained opening of all Yemen’s ports and Sann’a airport are vital steps, yet even if these actions were implemented today they would not be enough to address the humanitarian catastrophe. Humanitarians cannot resolve the crisis – their efforts must be matched by political determination.
What is needed is a new Security Council Resolution, if the UN, and the new UN Special Envoy Martin Griffith, are to contribute to conflict resolution in Yemen.
Catanzano continued: “The UK must now lead efforts to secure a resolution that calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities and lays the basis for securing the participation of all conflict actors in a political process to resolve the crisis.”