Yemeni President Rashad al-Alimi met separately on Thursday, July 11, 2024, with the UK and UAE ambassadors to Yemen to discuss coordinating joint positions and necessary actions to deter the Houthi group, which is internationally designated as a terrorist organization.

According to the official Yemeni news agency Saba, the meeting between al-Alimi and the UK ambassador to Yemen, Abde Sharif, addressed "bilateral relations, national and regional developments, and ways to coordinate joint efforts between the two friendly countries at all levels."

The meeting also touched upon "government economic reforms, the ongoing catastrophic consequences of the Houthi terrorist attacks on oil facilities, cargo ships, international shipping routes, and their serious violations against international aid workers and human rights activists," according to the agency.

Al-Alimi praised the UK's "continued support for the Yemeni Coast Guard, joint efforts to combat terrorism, arms smuggling, drugs, and organized crime, and the necessary punitive measures to deter the Houthi militia from violating international humanitarian law and relevant international resolutions."

Meanwhile, al-Alimi discussed with the UAE ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed al-Zaabi, "joint efforts to coordinate positions on current challenges at all levels."

The meeting addressed bilateral relations between the two countries and their peoples, and the promising prospects for strengthening them in various fields. It also touched upon the latest developments in the Yemeni situation and joint efforts to coordinate positions on current challenges at all levels, according to Saba.

These meetings come amid regional and international efforts to push Yemeni parties to sign a roadmap to end the nine-year war, amidst Yemeni concerns that this roadmap does not meet the aspirations of Yemenis for lasting and comprehensive peace.

On December 23, 2023, the United Nations announced that the Yemeni parties had reached an understanding to commit to a set of measures, including implementing a ceasefire covering all of Yemen, measures to improve living conditions in Yemen, and engaging in preparations to resume a comprehensive political process under the auspices of the United Nations.

The roadmap and peace efforts in Yemen have stalled due to attacks by the Houthi group, internationally designated as a terrorist organization, against commercial cargo ships in the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea, and the Gulf of Aden since November 2023.