MOSCOW, October 10. /TASS/. The US-led coalition’s strikes on Yemen violate international law, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin told UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg.
They discussed ways to boost the political process in Yemen, "despite the growing instability in the Middle East," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement following a meeting between Vershinin and Grundberg.
"The parties paid attention to the safety of international navigation. Russia pointed out that strikes on Yemen by the so-called US and UK-led international coalition, active in the Red Sea, violate international law and delay peace in Yemen," the statement reads.
Vershinin and Grundberg highlighted the importance of intense international efforts to improve "the worsening humanitarian situation in the country" and resume work on a roadmap to find a solution to the domestic crisis in Yemen.
"The parties reiterated that there was no alternative to resolving the domestic conflict in Yemen through political and diplomatic means, ensuring that the interests of the country’s leading political forces are taken into account," the Russian Foreign Ministry noted.
Following the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the Gaza Strip, the Ansar Allah movement said it would strike Israeli territory and prevent ships associated with Israel from passing through the waters of the Red Sea and the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait until the operation in the Palestinian enclave was halted. The Houthis have attacked dozens of civilian ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since last November.
In response to the Houthis’ actions, the US authorities announced the establishment of an international coalition and the launch of Operation Prosperity Guardian to ensure freedom of navigation and protection of ships in the Red Sea. Afterwards, the US and the UK started to carry out regular strikes on Houthi military facilities in Yemen.