Yemen’s internationally recognised government on Tuesday denied it was withdrawing from a landmark peace deal reached in Sweden.

The pact, known as the Stockholm agreement, was signed by the government and Iran-backed Houthis last December and brokered by the UN special envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths.

It includes agreements on a prisoner swap, a ceasefire and troop withdrawal from the Red Port city of Hodeida, and the formation of a committee to negotiate the future of the contested city of Taiz.

Recent local media reports suggested that Houthi escalations, in violation of the deal, had pushed the government to re-examine it position.

A government official denied the reports.

“No such move is in consideration,” the official told  The National.

The government has reaffirmed the “UN adherence to the three references of the Yemen peace process and to the actual Stockholm deal,” he said.

“There’s been a lot of tension in the past month due to Mr Griffiths’ performance and [the] Houthis’ lack of adherence to the peace deal,” the official said, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The government will resume its meetings this week with Mr Griffiths.

 “There’s work going on regarding Taiz as well,” said the official. The southern city is besieged by the Houthis.

Mr Griffiths is in a tough situation, the official said, as the Houthis are “refusing to implement” the Stockholm deal.

“He’s tried to please them too much, which has given him little leverage on them,” the official said.

Last month, Yemen’s President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi wrote a letter to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres complaining about his special envoy’s conduct in mediating between the government and Houthis.

-The National

-File photo