John Kerry Discusses Yemen With Gcc, Iranian Fms

Secretary of State John Kerry commended Saudi-led airstrikes in Yemen and pledged U.S. support for a coalition against Houthi rebels. 



Kerry spoke via conference call with foreign ministers from the Gulf Cooperation Council, or GCC, about the situation in Yemen.



"He commended the work of the coalition taking military action against the Houthis and noted the United State's support for those coalition efforts, including intelligence sharing, targeting assistance, and advisory and logistical support for strikes against Houthi targets," said State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke. 



Saudi Arabia conducted airstrikes early Thursday local time in Yemen, with the support of several regional powers including Qatar, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Pakistan. 



The ministers, while expressing support for political negotiations as the best way to resolve the crisis, also defended the Saudi campaign in the conflict-torn country against the as the Houthis have resorted to the use of force, according to Rathke. 



"There is no purely military solution to the situation in Yemen," Rathke said. "However, we also understand the Saudis' concerns, especially given the Houthis' failure to, you know, engage meaningfully in the political dialogue process."



Kerry met one-on-one with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif in Lausanne to discuss the Yemeni crisis. The Swiss city is currently hosting negotiations between world powers and Iran on the Islamic republic's controversial nuclear program. 



The situation in Yemen is not affecting those talks, Rathke said. 



The GCC is a political and economic partnership between Arab states in the Persian Gulf and includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.



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