Yemeni Foreign Minister Khaled al-Yamani criticized the international community for “extorting” the legitimate government and Saudi-led Arab coalition through the positions taken by some members of the European Union at the United Nations Human Rights Council.
He told Asharq Al-Awsat that his country will not recognize the latest council decision that extended the term of a rights probe that was looking into human rights violations in Yemen.
He also condemned Britain for voting in favor of extending the term of the team, specifically because it is responsible for the Yemen file at the UN Security Council.
London is aware of the details of the Yemen crisis and, yet, it voted in favor of the extension without even consulting the legitimate government, he charged.
Yamani said that the government sought before the rights council met at the end of September to overcome stances that are opposed to his country by holding direct talks with several of his counterparts. The talks were aimed at clarifying his government’s stances and reaching a “middle ground.”
“These countries, however, did not stand by our side, claiming that they could not go against European consensus,” he remarked.
“The European countries have their own interests, which contradict with the international effort that the United States is leading in order to isolate Iran and halt its terrorist activities in the region,” added the minister.
The majority of the reports that are supported by the EU are being written by suspicious sides, Yamani went on to say. They are being influenced by the Lebanese Hezbollah party leaderships that work with UN agencies and are active behind the scenes.
“Such efforts, however, will not deter us from performing our political and military duties,” he declared.
“We will defeat the Iranian project, which has allies in the Human Rights Council,” he stated.
