Head of the European Union Mission There is no military solution to the conflicts in Yemen

In his first interview, since his appointment as, Head of the European Union Mission to Yemen, Ambassador Patrick Simonnet called for renewed momentum for political efforts and warned against military escalation.

In this exclusive interview with Al Mushahid, he said, “calls for a comprehensive war will not only be catastrophic for the Yemeni people, but will also have negative repercussions that will extend to the entire region.”

Ambassador Simonet described the European Union’s role in addressing the Houthi escalation in the Red Sea as “purely defensive.” It goes beyond providing protection to commercial vessels transiting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, to assistance in responding to crises at sea.

Ambassador Simonet spoke about the European Union’s political, development, and humanitarian engagement in support of Yemen. He said, “We have allocated €251 million for the period from 2015 to 2027 to support these priorities, particularly humanitarian aid to alleviate the suffering of the Yemeni people.”

The Head of the European Union Delegation to Yemen also discussed the EU’s current and future priorities for Yemen, his expectations regarding the possibility of a political settlement to the Yemeni crisis, and his meeting with the Prime Minister and members of his internationally recognized government. He also discussed the EU’s role in supporting the efforts of local partners, such as youth and women, in peacebuilding.

Interviewed by- Waheeb Al-Nossari

Al-Mushahid: What is the nature of the efforts carried out by the EU Delegation to Yemen across political, development, humanitarian, and other areas? What are your current and future priorities?

Simonnet: The EU is a long-standing partner of Yemen and has been actively engaged across the political, development, and humanitarian fields to support Yemen and its people. Since 2015, the EU has provided nearly €2 billion