Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis are on the cusp of a “breakthrough” nationwide ceasefire agreement, Reuters reports, on the condition that the Houthis agree to an establish a buffer zone between the two countries.
The proposal, reportedly discussed in “high-level back channel talks” between leaders of the two sides, would create a buffer zone along the border before signing a UN proposal for a nationwide ceasefire.
Reuters cited three sources familiar with the talks, but Saudi Arabia did not comment officially.
“If a deal is struck, it would mark the biggest breakthrough in efforts to reach a political settlement since the conflict – widely seen as a proxy war between arch-enemies Saudi Arabia and Iran – began in 2014,” Reuters reports.
But an outgoing lame-duck U.S. president Donald Trump could imperil the deal, the report says, if he designates the Houthi movement a terrorist organization before he leaves office after suffering a defeat in the U.S. presidential election in November. Both Washington and Riyadh see the Yemeni group as an extension of Iranian influence in the region, and the U.N. recognizes the Hadi-led government as legitimate in Yemen.
In talks, Riyadh has demanded more security assurances from the Houthis, “including a buffer zone along the borders with northern Yemen until a U.N.-backed transitional government is formed, the sources said,” Reuters reports. “Riyadh wants Houthi forces to leave a corridor along the Saudi borders to prevent incursions and artillery fire.”
