The buffer zone agreement on the Yemeni-Saudi border will not succeed because the Houthis have endless demands and are subject to Iranian geopolitical ambitions that seek to change the map of the entire region, not just Yemen, a source close to the Yemeni government told Sheba Intelligence on Thursday.
The Yemeni government official indicated the new Houthi demands led to their departure from Riyadh without announcing an agreement. The Official told Sheba Intelligence, "Iran informed the Houthis of its proposal in the last moments of the negotiations, and that Iranian proposal constituted (critical moment pressure) because they [Iranians] want to extract approval from the Saudi brothers for the Houthi authority."
He added, "The Iranians' proposal the Houthis received was to request Saudi approval for a special status for their areas of control, or self-rule, which made the Houthis explain this proposal with detailed demands, having control over the port of Midi, and border crossings such as Al-Tiwal in Hajjah province, and both Alab and Al-Baqa' in Saada province so that the Hajjah, Saada, and Al-Jawf provinces will be under their control. They also demanded a share in the Safer oil sector in Marib. But the Saudis informed the Houthis that all their demands will be under consideration and cannot be approved at the same time."
He went on to say, "We are facing a plan that aims to create an Iranian state in North Yemen that possesses ports, wealth, and people. Their future stage will be to expand east and south and plunge the entire region into chaos and intersecting wars."
On Monday, September 18, Sheba Intelligence revealed an agreement between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia regarding creating a buffer zone along the entire border with a depth of twenty kilometers. According to the sources, the Houthis expressed their approval, but the conditions they put forward are unknown.
