Those pouring weapons to Ukraine have been less enthusiastic about Yemen

In the shadow of the war in Ukraine, other conflicts receive less attention. It is the case also with Yemen, for example, which where the conflict is being exacerbated by one of the world's biggest humanitarian crises. Nine years ago, Shiite Muslims rebelled against the democratically elected leadership, but the international community did not rush to defend the country's sovereignty. Indeed, at the time it was argued that sending arms into the conflict zone would only escalate the war. We asked the Yemeni Foreign Minister Ahmad Avad bin Mubarak, who recently visited Budapest, about the impact of the war in Ukraine, the West's double standards, the chances of peace and the role of Hungarians.

20230721 budapest Ahmad Avad bin Mubarak Minister of Foreign Affairs of Yemen havran zoltan magyar nemzet

A war has been raging in Yemen for 9 years, yet the international committee seems to have forgotten about it. Ukraine is in the focus of all attention. What can be the explanation for this difference?

– In the past, the Yemen war has been discussed with a bad narrative. In the eyes of the international community, Yemen has only been a battleground in the conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran, which is a mistaken view. As a consequence, no attempts have been made to resolve the root cause of the problem, only the humanitarian crises have been managed. Let me make an illustrative example.

Europe had not paid much attention to Iranian drones, until they were deployed in Ukraine.

– Now suddenly everybody speaks about the Shaheds, even though we have been warning about the threat posed by them for years. I understand, of course, that the Ukraine war is raging at Europe’s doorsteps, which explains the completely different approach.

Photo: Europress/AFP/Ahmad Al-Basha

Some Western states have outright rejected to sell weapons in “conflict zones” so far. Now the same states are pouring weapons into Ukraine. Isn’t it strange?

– The reason is that they have seen Yemen from the humanitarian perspective presented by the media, and it put decision-makers under huge social pressure.

In our case, they argued that arms shipments to the Yemeni or Saudi army would just add fuel to flame, and the war would be escalated.

By that, however, they only prolonged the war. In 2018, for example, the Yemeni military launched an attack to liberate Hodaidah. This is the largest port city of the country, with 80 percent of aid shipments arriving there. Yet people suffer from malnutrition the most there. Victory was imminent, we were 5 kms away from taking back total control over the city. All of a sudden, however, we receive huge pressure from the media, international NGOs, and European governments, to halt the attack due to humanitarian reasons. We entered the talks, but what has been realised from that agreement? Nothing! The houthis, however, regained control over Hodaidah, and now they are using the city to launch attacks against international shipping routes. Ukraine’s case has been a good lecture to us.

What is the impact of the war in Ukraine on Yemen?

– It has a serious impact on us. Yemen has already suffered a lot due to the coronavirus pandemic, as the clashes had taken a toll on our health care system. Besides, our economy had already been facing huge challenges before the war.

The situation was exacerbated by the disruption of food supply chains, as 65 per cent of the cereal products arrive from Russia and Ukraine.

Moreover, the UN’s World Food Programme cut the sources intended for us to half, first due to the conflict in Afghanistan, then the ones in Ukraine and Sudan. On top of all this, although 90 percent of our revenue is generated from oil, we haven’t been able to sell a single drop because of the constant attacks of the Houthis on our facilities. Of course, no one is talking about this!

A man cleans grain of husks at a market in the Yemeni capital Sanaa on July 19, 2023.Photo by MTI/EPA/Jajha Arhab

What is Yemen’s position on the war in Ukraine?

– We do not support either party, we are on the side of international law. We respect the territorial sovereignty of both countries, urge peace as soon as possible, and support finding a solution to the disagreements at the negotiating table.

The Institute for Economics and Peace has recently published a report saying that last year, the war in Yemen claimed 63 percent fewer victims than before. Can it mean a hope for peace?

– There is always reason to be hopeful, and one always needs a certain level of optimism. We have never shied away dialogue or compromises. We have engaged in talks several times, with the latest of those taking place last April. We seemed to have succeeded in reaching a lasting ceasefire but unfortunately, after six months of relative calm, the Houthis seriously and repeatedly violated the agreements. Then, in October, the UN tabled another ceasefire agreement, which we immediately accepted. The Houthis have not responded ever since. So now a kind of “gentlemen's agreement” is in effect.

But it’s clear that the Houthis are gathering strength and massing their troops. The war can brake out again at any moment, the calm is very fragile.

This is nevertheless the reason for the decrease in the number of casualties. This, however, only applies to direct armed clashes. The figure doesn’t include those who have died do to the famine, the sieges that have been going on for years, the attacks against the infrastructure or the mine fields. Their number has even increased.

Photo: Europress/AFP/ Saleh Al-Obeidi

Can the situation be improved by the fact that Saudi Arabia and Iran have started to settle their diplomatic relations?

– Look, we would also like settled relations with Iran. We don’t see them as enemies. But it can only work if they don’t try to force their own system on other countries. We have only one condition, that they respect our sovereignty. Naturally, we welcome if Saudi Arabia and Iran settle their relations and hope that it also contributes to peace in Yemen. We hope that Iranians won’t send the Houthis any more weapons. But there is no sign of it yet. We don’t see that Iran or the Houthis have changed in any way.

War, epidemics, famine, economic hardship. Yemen is facing many challenges, yet Europe is not besieged by millions of Yemeni refugees. Why is this?

– The explanation is that we have solved the refugee problem inside Yemen. In fact, we do not have refugees, only internally displaced persons (IDPs, often referred to as internal refugees). The false narrative of international organizations is that 70% of the Yemeni population lives in the areas controlled by the Houthis. But this might have been true only in the pre-war period. Today, millions have fled to other parts of the country. And we are doing our best to keep them there. Every Yemeni wakes up every morning thinking that tomorrow might be better. Those who have left are not living in camps. There are millions of people in Saudi Arabia, but they are all working. Hundreds of thousands have moved to Egypt, where many are established businessmen and intellectuals.

I always tell my European colleagues that our efforts are not appreciated enough. But they should address the problem before it appears on their borders.

You are the first Yemeni foreign minister on an official visit in Hungary. What was the purpose of your visit?

– Despite almost 64 years of relations between our countries, I am indeed the first Yemeni Foreign Minister here.

But you wouldn't believe how much of a mark Hungary has left on Yemen!

The Yemeni and Hungarian foreign ministers in Budapest. Photo by Robert Hegedus

Since the 1960s, many Hungarian health and agricultural projects have been implemented in my country, and tens of thousands of Yemenis have studied at Hungarian universities, especially in medicine. Relations have been good ever since, and we appreciate the fact that Hungary supports the legitimate Yemeni government in all international forums. During my visit, I have signed three agreements and we have discussed possibilities for future cooperation. For example, we discussed the use of Hungarian expertise in mine clearance and post-war reconstruction. After all, in peacetime we will be able to count on those who stood by us in times of trouble. Trade relations have already increased by 140 percent last year, and we hope that Hungary can become our largest supplier of medicines.

Cover photo: Yemeni Foreign Minister Ahmad Avad bin Mubarak (Photo: Zoltán Havran / Magyar Nemzet)