The provision of humanitarian assistance to the people in Yemen where the declining situation is materializing into a humanitarian catastrophe must be among the Primary concerns for the international community, Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN Vassily Nebenzia said in a Security Council meeting on Thursday.
"The humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate, and more and more appears like a humanitarian catastrophe. We seem to repeat this in every meeting where we discuss Yemen," Nebenzia said. "Providing humanitarian assistance to Yemen must be one of the top priorities in our work."

The most effective way to address the humanitarian problems, Nebenzia added, is to achieve a peace settlement which will enable the delivery of aid to people in need and rebuild the country devastated by war.

In this regard, Nebenzia said, the Russian Collective Security Concept for the Persian Gulf Area, presented in August and aimed at reducing the risks of war in the region, becomes highly appropriate.

"We are convinced that resolving the Yemen conflict in the future could become a window of opportunity for resolving other acute problems in the region, and in this context, the Russian concept of collective security in the PG is becoming more and more relevant," the diplomat said.

The armed conflict in Yemen between government forces led by President Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi and the Houthi movement has been ongoing since 2015. The United Nations has repeatedly called the Yemeni conflict the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with an estimated 24 million people - nearly 80 percent of the country's population - currently in need of aid and protection.

In December 2018, for the first time in several years, the parties to the conflict in Yemen came face-to-face in Stockholm for a meeting organized by the United Nations. However, the situation on the ground has remained tense.