Guterres Assures Yemen's Hadi UN To Redouble Efforts To Support Stockholm Pact - Spokesman

UNITED NATIONS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 25th May, 2019) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a letter assured Yemeni President Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi that Special Envoy Martin Griffiths will redouble efforts to implement Stockholm Agreement commitments, UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a press briefing on Friday.

Earlier in the day, Hadi's office said that the president sent a letter to Guterres criticizing his envoy for Yemen for allegedly siding with the Houthi rebel movement.

"We did, indeed, receive the letter and we have replied to that letter. He [Guterres] assured President Hadi that his special envoy, Mr. Griffiths, will redouble efforts to support the parties on delivering on the commitments made in Stockholm, and do so in a manner which is balanced and fully supportive of achieving a peaceful and lasting political solution to this conflict," Dujarric said.

Under the Stockholm Agreement signed in December, the Yemeni government and the Houthi movement agreed to implement a ceasefire, exchange prisoners and open humanitarian corridors in Al Hudaydah.

In the letter, Guterres also pointed out that the United Nations remains committed to the implementation of the Stockholm Agreement to alleviate the humanitarian crisis and end the suffering of the Yemeni people, Dujarric continued.

"The Secretary-General has full confidence in Mr. Griffiths and his work," the spokesman said.

Yemen has been locked in a conflict between the government forces, led by Hadi, and the Houthi rebels for years. The Saudi-led coalition has been conducting strikes against the Houthis at Hadi's request since March 2015.