The escalating violence comes nearly two years after the Stockholm agreement, which aimed to end fighting in Hodeidah and Taiz. [3] An increase in fighting in Hodeidah is of particular concern, Save the Children said, as its port is the gateway to 70 percent of all imports into Yemen[4]. Even a temporary closure reduces the availability of food for vulnerable families at a time when the country is on the brink of famine, the charity warned[5]. [3] osesgy.unmissions.org/full-text-stockholm-agreement You can read here our analysis of the agreement, but its key elements were a prisoner exchange, an agreement on the reciprocal transfers of Hodeida – the port, the city and the surrounding area – and the obligation to discuss de-escalation in another frontal city, Taiz. The Hodeida agreement, in particular, was essential. A battle for the Red Sea port threatened to cut off a trade route that accounts for 70 percent of the most important goods shipped to Yemen, propelling the country to famine. Confidence continued to decline after a series of Houthi attacks on high-level targets far from Hodeidah, including a United Arab Emirates (EMIRATE) base in Mokha (hit by a Houthi missile), a Yemeni government-run military facility in Lahj governorate and sites in Saudi Arabia. At the same time, the Saudi-led coalition has hardened its rhetoric in what many see as preparation for a return to hostility. It must also place its forces in key positions on the Red Sea coast, including Mokha. While not all of these actions constitute violations of the ceasefire agreement (in many cases, Houthi attacks took place outside its geographical scope), they are highly provocative. The revised text of the 2017 Convention reflects the amendments adopted by the eighth session of the Conference of the Parties to Annexes A and C.

Strengthening the Stockholm Agreement requires an international consensus on the process, particularly in the UN Security Council, which must almost certainly allow repeated extensions of the UN mandate in Yemen. To succeed, security council members must avoid close and lengthy negotiations between Britain and the United States. . . .