US special envoy for Yemen travels to the Middle East

The US special envoy for Yemen will visit Saudi and Jordan this week, as part of diplomatic efforts in support of the United Nations-mediated truce in Yemen. The US State Department reported on Monday.

Tim Lenderking’s “engagements will focus on expanding, extending, and renewing the current truce agreement that will further the tangible benefits already reaching Yemenis and build towards a more comprehensive, inclusive peace process and permanent ceasefire,” the statement said.

The US calls on all parties to choose peace and recovery over continued war and destruction for the sake of the Yemeni people, the statement added.

The move follows President Joe Biden’s recent visit to Saudi Arabia where the war in Yemen was a top issue for discussion.

“Biden’s visit reflects an increasing (and perhaps reluctant) alignment with the anti-democratic axis in the region on foreign policy that will have sweeping ramifications across the Middle East and North Africa in Yemen, Libya, Syria and Sudan – where the UAE in particular remains influential,” Sami Hamdi, managing director of International Interest, a risk and intelligence company, told AGBI.