A Chinese envoy on Thursday called for efforts to advance the political process and alleviate the humanitarian situation in Yemen. Since its return to Aden, the Yemeni government has tried its best to govern and provide services for people's livelihood under very difficult circumstances. China highly commends its efforts and expects the government to accelerate internal integration, smoothly carry out its work, and get ready to participate in the comprehensive political process, said Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations. The escalation of conflict in northern Yemen has caused civilian casualties and undermined mutual trust between the government and the Houthis, threatening the political mediation efforts. China urges all parties to the conflict to heed UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' appeal for a cease-fire, put down their guns, exercise restraint, and refrain from any actions that may increase tension so as to create a safe environment for the peace process, he told the Security Council. China welcomes the U.S. move to revoke its designation of the Houthis as terrorists and the appointment of a U.S. special envoy to promote the political process in Yemen. "We hope the United States will adopt more measures conducive to the peace process in Yemen and commit itself to maintaining peace and stability in the Gulf region." China appreciates the recent shuttle diplomacy carried out by UN Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths and hopes all the parties can seize this positive momentum to meet each other halfway and create conditions for lasting peace in Yemen, he said. The settlement of the issues in the Gulf region needs both the joint efforts of regional countries and the constructive role of key powers. China welcomes the recent visit to Iran by Griffiths and hopes that the exchanges will bring about positive impact on the political settlement of the Yemeni issue, he said. Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi has proposed a multilateral platform for dialogue in the Gulf region. China is ready to conduct consultations with countries that have similar ideas to advance the forging of new consensus on maintaining peace and stability in the region, said Geng. He also called for international efforts to alleviate the humanitarian situation in Yemen. The people of Yemen are experiencing multiple crises, including famine, COVID-19, oil shortages, and currency depreciation. The international community must increase assistance to Yemen. The UN system must efficiently coordinate humanitarian relief operations, while all parties to the conflict must ensure safe and unhindered humanitarian access, he said. The high-level pledging conference on Yemen will be held next month. China wishes the conference a success, he said. The issue of the derelict Safer oil tanker moored off Yemen requires great attention, he said. "We deeply regret that to date, the UN technical team has not been able to go on-site, and urge the Houthis to cooperate with the United Nations to implement the tanker maintenance agreement as soon as possible in order to prevent catastrophic accidents." China has been providing assistance as much as it can to help Yemen tide over famine and fight COVID-19, said Geng. Food assistance provided by China has reached most of Yemen's governorates. In accordance with the economic and technological cooperation agreement recently signed with Yemen, China will provide additional assistance worth 100 million yuan (15.4 million U.S. dollars) to Yemen as its contribution to alleviating its humanitarian crisis, he said. China supports the Yemen Sanctions Committee and its panel of experts in effectively carrying out their work in accordance with its mandate authorized by the Security Council so as to make positive contributions to the political settlement of the Yemen issue, he said.