Russia, China concerned over deepening Yemen crisis

Russia and China have expressed deep concerns over the alarming situation in Yemen as Saudi Arabia pushes ahead with its military campaign against the impoverished Arab country, Press TV reports.

During a meeting with his visiting Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in the Russian capital, Moscow, on Tuesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stressed that the crisis in Yemen must be solved through negotiations.

He said Moscow and Beijing continue to support political and diplomatic solutions to the conflicts across the Middle East.

“Russia is very concerned by the alarming situation in Yemen. It is necessary to stop any use of force, and to begin negotiations between all Yemeni parties,” Lavrov pointed out.

Wang, for his part, said China and Russia are committed to the promotion of a multi-polar world order through mutual cooperation.

“Together with Russia, we are seeking to connect with leading nations, and develop equal and stable cooperation. We are pulling efforts to achieve a higher place and role in global efforts for a broad range of developing countries and emerging countries. We have been closely interacting over international and regional problems, and we have been working together to promote the idea of multi-polarity for years,” the Chinese foreign minister pointed out.

Both sides also underlined the importance of increasing the effectiveness of joint efforts to counter global and regional challenges, and to secure the sustainable development of world economy.

Earlier on Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying called for an immediate truce in Yemen to enable the delivery of aid and medical supplies.

“China is deeply concerned about the situation in Yemen. We hope all parties will declare a ceasefire soon to avoid more civilian casualties,” Hua said during a daily news briefing.

China hopes all parties will resolve the crisis through political dialogue and restore order, she said, calling for more attention to the humanitarian disaster in Yemen.

“China calls on all parties to abide by international law and provide safety guarantees and support for countries to evacuate their nationals,” Hua said.

She said the UN Security Council should play a constructive role in easing the tensions and the humanitarian crisis in Yemen and work toward a political solution.

Saudi Arabia’s air campaign against Yemen started on March 26 without a UN mandate in a bid to restore power to fugitive former President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh.

MP/HJL/HRB

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