Reem Abaza:

What's your assessment of the implementation of the agreement regarding Hudaydah, of the ceasefire and the redeployment of troops?

Martin Griffiths:

Well, I think first of all, the sort of thing that only the United Nations as an organization can really address. And a good example of that is the fact that the ceasefire and withdrawal monitoring will be led by someone as experienced as Patrick Cammaert who has been many things in his career including in the Kivus but also military advisor. So we're really lucky to have him. And uh, secondly the Secretary- General himself has been very invested in this and is very keen to get everything moving as quickly as possible. And it is within a week of the agreements in Sweden that we're going to see people moving onto the ground in Hudaydah. I think that's remarkable. It's still, it's still going to be a hard slog to make it work according to plan, but it's a good start. And so far, pretty much the ceasefire in Hodeida is holding.

Reem Abaza:

The UN has two roles in Hudaydah, one through the redeployment coordination committee. And you said, Eh, General Cammeart is chairing this committee from the UN, what capacity does he have? How will they implement this role on the ground?

Martin Griffiths:

Well, that's something which the secretary general will describe in some detail in a report to the Security Council if, as we imagine will happen, a UN Security Council resolution is passed in the next day or so that will require that report. So, I think the details of General Cammeart monitoring mission will come clear partly when he's on the ground, but also in that report to the Council. But I imagine that what we're going to see under his command unarmed monitors who will be stationed in key locations throughout the city and port and a fairly robust reporting mechanism. As you know, what is envisaged is a weekly report to the Security council on compliance. I think that's very, very important and it gives confidence to the parties, uh, and ourselves and the international community that the agreement will stick.

Reem Abaza:

Can you give us any more details about the unarmed monitors?

Martin Griffiths:

These unarmed monitors will depend essentially on the good faith of the two parties and what's been very striking, even yesterday when General Cammeart held his first meeting of this RCC, the committee he chairs, both sides expressed their full commitment to make the monitoring work. And we know that the leaders, at least all of those two representatives on both sides know each other very well and have worked together before. So that gives us some confidence. No ceasefire works simply through monitoring. It works through the will of the parties and nothing that I have heard from either side, gives me doubt of that will, it doesn't mean to say it is going to be easy, but the will I am sure is there.

Reem Abaza: About the leading role to support the management of the port, when will this UN role start and how?

Martin Griffiths:

I think that's, as you pointed out, just as important. In fact, perhaps even more important than the ceasefire itself. Lise Grande, the exceptional Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator has with her colleagues in the agencies, developed plans, quite detailed plans for this. We were very lucky in Sweden to have representatives from her office and from the World Food Programme who were with us fully part of the team from the UN in Sweden mediating these agreements. So they have been fully involved in this from the start. And I know that the World Food Programme, which will play perhaps the lead role in reinforcing the operation of the Red Sea Port Authority, um, uh, has already begun to think how that's going to be done.

Reem Abaza:

And I have to ask also about the implementation of the exchange of prisoners agreement, because you mentioned this is a very important component in building trust between parties, is there any progress on this front?

Martin Griffiths:

There is, there is progress that the advantage that we had with the prisoners exchange agreement was that, first of all, it was actually agreed before we went to Sweden as you know, just in the few days before. And secondly, again, the two people on each side, the government of Yemen principally and Ansar Allah, they knew each other very, very well. They've negotiated on this issue. What's envisaged, which would be a remarkable day, is the release of 4000 prisoners, 2000 from each side, air lifted from one part of Yemen to another from Sana’a to Hadramout and back, which would be an incredible moment of course for 4,000 families getting their sons and daughters back. But secondly, as a remarkable sign of hope for the people of Yemen. The International Committee of the Red Cross, which is also present in a support role in Sweden has agreed to manage that lift. I hope it works. It will be great if it does.

Reem Abaza:

How about the other issues that were not agreed on in Sweden, namely the reopening of Sana’a airport and the Central Bank.

Martin Griffiths:

Yes, the reopening of Sanaa airport which has been a vexed issue for years and where we've hoped make progress ever since I started this assignment back in March, and particularly because the Secretary- General is very forceful on this is to, and very concerned that we make movement on that. We have - we're still negotiating between the two sides to an acceptance of the essential components of the agreement that we hope to have in Sweden. We don't need to have another round of talks to get that agreement done. The government of Yemen has been very forceful again in wanting this agreement agreed. And I think Yemenis would like to find that they can fly in and out of Sana’a, in a way that they have not been able to do for a couple of years. So we hope to make progress on that. The Central Bank of Yemen, an economic issue, is slightly more complicated, but in fact, what we would like to see happen is a first meeting maybe in Amman, maybe somewhere else, of technical people within the central bank with the help of the IMF to make sure that there is transparent, uh, uh, process for revenue collection, including by the way from the port of Hudaydah as a basis for the payment of salaries throughout Yemen for all civil servants.

Reem Abaza:

The outcome of the Sweden consultations was a breakthrough, but everyone is looking forward to the next round of consultations now. Can you talk to us about the main issues or what you would like to see discussed in these consultations?

Martin Griffiths:

What I hope we can achieve in the next round, um, and of course I’ll need to seek the agreement of President Hadi, uh, on the timing and venue, um, as well as the Ansar Allah leadership. But what we in the UN hopes see in the next round is the first, uh, discussion of the essential elements of a political solution to this conflict. In other words, what I hope to see is for those people who say Sweden was fine, but was merely a humanitarian step forward to then uh, agree and understand that the next round will be a political step forward. We have to address the main issues in order to make that progress and to give some kind of sense to Yemen and to the international community and the Security Council as to what kind of timing as to how quickly we'll be able to negotiate an end to the conflict. I think the next round, we'll get as much clearer idea on the of these questions.

Reem Abaza:

We all saw the positive outcome of the Sweden consultations, but backstage did you have in any moment any doubts about the whole process?

Martin Griffiths:

Throughout really!  We were so pleased just to get there and see the two parties sitting across the table. That was a great moment and then there were many people who said, well look, that's fine. That's enough already and I think all of us involved in this and I include in that in many, many ambassadors and diplomats who are present and the support of member states to get us there, they wanted a lot more than that because it's quite a moment when people in a war like the conflict in Yemen, uh, decide to sit down their weapons for a moment and sit down and talk to each other first time for over two years. As you know, that's quite a moment and you really have to get the benefit from it and not just allow it to be a simple confidence building measure in itself. So personally, I was very, very keen to be sure that we could make movement on the key issues including Hudaydah. Some people are quite skeptical of this, but remember this, we had been actively negotiating some kind of agreement on Hudaydah since May because of the humanitarian issues and worries about a complex in the city and the port. So we knew a lot of way we wanted to go and we were very fortunate that the parties in Sweden agreed with us.

Reem Abaza:

You worked closely with the Women’s Advisory Group. They were present during the consultations in Sweden. How did their input affect the whole process?

Martin Griffiths: What was very good about these, this group, this group of, women, there’s six of them, but we'd already had them with us in Geneva in September, is that, that I met them every day. Um, and they were able to mix very easily and very effectively, as you can well imagine, with all of the members of the parties in social and in the various buildings that we were working in. They weren't present at the formal negotiations, uh, and didn't expect to be because that's a matter for the parties. But what, what they were able to do is two things. First of all, they're able to provide advice to the, in an informal way for the members of the parties. And secondly, they were able to let me know and my colleagues know what was actually going on behind the scenes. So for us, they were a huge resource, which I hope will only improve and expand over time.

Reem Abaza:

2018 is coming to an end. Everyone is looking back. If you look back how would you describe it for Yemen?

Martin Griffiths:

A terrifying year. Because of the awful predictions, famine, and of battle coming to their localities, a terrifying year for Yemenis. But as we moved through the year we saw international opinion fixed clearly on the need for a political solution. Also a year eventually of hope, which is I think what we believe Sweden was able to produce right at the end of this year. But what it means is that  2019, if we're lucky, if the parties will it, can finally be a year when we put this conflict to bed. So 2018, I hope will be the last, year in which Yemen is at war. 

ENDS.