Iran Emphasizes 'Yemeni-Yemeni Dialogues' to End Conflict in Yemen

The Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, in a meeting with Yusuf bin Alawi, the Foreign Minister of Oman in Tehran, called for dialogue among Yemeni groups to end the conflict in the country. According to reports from Iranian news agencies, in the meeting on Saturday, March 16, Ali Shamkhani also emphasized that the common view of Iran and Oman regarding the Yemen crisis is that the celebration in this country must quickly end with 'the establishment of a ceasefire, lifting the siege, and sending humanitarian aid.' He also described the Yemeni-Yemeni dialogues as another point of agreement between Tehran and Muscat regarding the Yemen crisis, aimed at 'forming new political structures based on the will and desire of the people of Yemen.' The Yemen crisis began with the occupation of Sana'a, the capital of the country, by Houthi rebels in 2014, and the intervention of the Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia in support of the legitimate government of Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi three years ago gave it new dimensions. Iran has never concealed its support for the Houthi rebels, although it always describes this support as moral and has denied reports of supplying missile weapons to this group, despite UN experts' assertions regarding the Iranian origin of Houthi missiles. Reuters, citing diplomats and Yemeni sources, reminded that recently Saudi Arabia and the Houthis held secret negotiations in an effort to end the three-year war in Yemen. The visit of the Omani Foreign Minister to Tehran comes at a time when it has been reported that this country hosted secret talks between the Houthis and Saudi officials, while the US Secretary of Defense also visited Oman last week. During the meeting with the Omani Foreign Minister, Ali Shamkhani also rejected any negotiations over the Islamic Republic's missile program and stated that Iran would not leave any American actions against the nuclear agreement unanswered. The Iran nuclear agreement, reached in 2015 in Vienna after intensive negotiations between Iran and six world powers, lifts nuclear-related sanctions against Iran in exchange for limitations on Tehran's nuclear program, with the hope of limiting Tehran's potential to develop nuclear weapons. The Trump administration considers this agreement to have many flaws, including that the limitations outlined in this agreement are temporary, the JCPOA does not cover Iran's missile tests, and the agency must have access to all of Iran's facilities under the JCPOA. Mr. Trump has set a deadline for correcting the flaws of the JCPOA, which expires on May 12, 2018, when he must again comment on the renewal of the lifting of sanctions against Iran. If efforts to amend the JCPOA do not succeed by then, the US President has threatened that he will not extend the lifting of sanctions against Iran and will withdraw from the JCPOA. Recently, the dismissal of Rex Tillerson and his replacement with Mike Pompeo, who has a tough stance against Iran, has fueled speculation that the US will withdraw from this agreement, an action that is likely to lead to the cancellation of the Iran nuclear agreement with the international community. Reuters reported on Friday night that the three European countries involved in the nuclear negotiations, namely France, Germany, and Britain, have recently proposed new sanctions to other EU members regarding missile activities and Iran's role in the Syrian war in an effort to persuade the US government to maintain the nuclear agreement. According to Reuters, the proposed sanctions are part of the EU's strategy to preserve the Iran nuclear agreement, aiming to show US President Donald Trump that there are other ways to counter Iran's power projection beyond its borders. According to Reuters' assessment, this proposal, which is set to be discussed at the EU foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels on Monday, exceeds the expectations that the US State Department had from its three European allies, as another document that Reuters obtained last month only emphasized the Europeans' commitment to improving the Iran nuclear agreement. At the same time, such a proposal has faced a strong reaction from Iran, and Abbas Araghchi, the political deputy of Iran's Foreign Minister, emphasized that 'if some European countries are seeking actions such as imposing non-nuclear sanctions on Iran to please the US President, they will make a major miscalculation and will see the direct consequences of it on the JCPOA and the continuation of this agreement.' Despite the fact that some of the EU's human rights sanctions against Iranian individuals remain in place, the EU lifted financial and economic restrictions against Iran in 2016 and now, according to Reuters, 'does not want to be seen as violating the nuclear agreement.' Iran has accepted limitations on its enrichment activities while repeatedly emphasizing that its nuclear program is pursued for peaceful purposes and electricity generation, and at the same time has rejected any negotiations over its missile program, which it claims is defensive in nature. The Islamic Republic has also rejected Western accusations regarding destabilizing activities in the region and has dismissed Donald Trump's requests for a review of the nuclear agreement.