Checked Against Delivery
Thank you, Madam President,
Let me also thank Special Envoy Grundberg and Under Secretary-General Fletcher for their briefings. I also welcome the participation of the Permanent Representative of Yemen in our meeting today.
We welcome the announcement that the US and Iran have reached an agreement. It is important that it is now implemented, so that regional stability can be restored and the Strait of Hormuz reopened.
At a time of uncertainty across the Middle East, we strongly urge the Houthis to refrain from dragging Yemen into the broader conflict. We condemn the recent attacks by the Houthis against Israel as well as their threats to resume attacks on ships in the Red Sea and impose a naval blockade.
Madam President,
Denmark welcomes the recent agreement between the Government of Yemen and the Houthis to release over 1,600 conflict-related detainees.
And we commend the efforts of Special Envoy Grundberg and his office as well as the ICRC in facilitating this agreement between the parties.
This agreement demonstrates that even amid deep mistrust and prolonged conflict, results are possible when dialogue and diplomacy are pursued.
We call on the parties to move swiftly toward implementing the deal, so that families can be reunited as soon as possible.
Madam President,
As we are marking the second anniversary of the mass-wave of detentions by the Houthis in June 2024, we hope that this deal can serve as a necessary trust-building measure to help advance the release of UN and other colleagues who remain arbitrarily detained.
Once again, let me reiterate our strongest condemnation of these ongoing detentions, which have continued for far too long and clearly violate international law.
Denmark demands that the Houthis immediately and unconditionally release all detained personnel from the UN, NGOs, civil society and diplomatic missions.
Madam President,
Yemen remains highly exposed to the economic repercussions of the current regional escalation, with the most vulnerable populations bearing the burden of rising prices, import disruptions, and declining remittances.
In the absence of a political solution, the humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate and the number of people in need of acute aid continues to rise, as highlighted by USG Fletcher today.
Furthermore, the detentions impede the work of the UN and the delivery of lifesaving humanitarian aid to the Yemeni population in desperate need.
We need to reverse this trend.
In closing,
We call on the Government of Yemen and the Houthis to build on the positive momentum generated from the prisoner exchange agreement and to engage constructively with the Special Envoy towards an inclusive political settlement and a lasting peace in Yemen.
I thank you.
