Saudi Arabia is Yemen’s most important and largest partner, while the Yemeni government is trying to restore its presence across the country, Yemen’s ambassador to Pakistan told journalists.
ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 12th Sep, 2026) Yemen’s Ambassador to Pakistan Muhammad Mutahir Al-Ashabi said the situation in Yemen was extremely dire, adding that Bab el-Mandeb, an international oil passage, was being blocked.
Speaking to journalists in Islamabad, the Yemeni ambassador said Yemen and Pakistan had highly positive relations, with nearly 500 Yemeni students studying in Pakistan.
He said Yemen was currently facing extremely difficult challenges, the biggest of which concerned the country’s integrity and sovereignty.
Ambassador Muhammad Mutahir Al-Ashabi said Bab el-Mandeb was a global and highly important route for energy, oil and food.
He said 60 percent of oil passed through Bab el-Mandeb, and its closure would create a global energy challenge. He added that peace was the Yemeni government’s priority.
The Yemeni ambassador said the Houthis had their own agenda and wanted to gain power and turn other Yemenis into second-class citizens.
He said the Yemeni government wanted lasting peace, while the Houthis were refusing negotiations and had increased tensions in the current situation.
Muhammad Mutahir Al-Ashabi said Pakistan was an important country that could do—and was doing—a great deal.
He said an international agreement had been reached with Saudi Arabia regarding Najran, Jazan and several other southern areas, and the matters had been resolved through negotiations and under the international agreement.
He said Saudi Arabia was Yemen’s most important and largest partner, adding that the Yemeni government was trying to restore its presence in the country.
He said his government was attempting to unite other groups against the Houthis.
Ambassador Muhammad Mutahir Al-Ashabi said Yemen had large reserves of oil and gas as well as other natural resources.
He said weapons were reaching the Houthis by sea routes, while the United States was merely watching the situation from outside.
He said the Houthis relied on ballistic missiles and drones. He added that Yemen was importing pharmaceutical products from Pakistan and was implementing the agreements concluded by former President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
