�IRNA - War is not a solution and won't establish security, Iran's former top nuclear negotiator Hossein Mousavian said, referring to Saudi Arabia's military intervention in Yemen that has claimed thousands of civilian lives.


War and military aggression would not lead to establishing security, Mousavian said in a televised forum hosted by CGTN (China Global Television Network).

Iraq attacked Iran in 1980 resorting to the same pretext, but the action did not result in security for Iraq, he said, arguing that Saudi Arabia's aggression in Yemen would not bring security for the Arab peninsula.

Riyadh with its military intervention has spread the seeds of insecurity in Saudi Arabia throughout the coming years and decades, the visiting Princeton University researcher added.

Over 10,000 Yemenis were killed, millions of civilians have been displaced, half a million people are struggling with contagious diseases, half of civilian infrastructures in Yemen, like hospitals, have been destroyed in Saudi Arabia's attacks on Yemen; this would not lead to security for Saudis, the Iranian former diplomat affirmed.

Diplomacy should have been put on Saudis' agenda from the very beginning of the conflict in order to reach peace through dialogue, according to Mousavian.

Yemen started retaliation only after being militarily attacked by Riyadh, he noted, reminding that Saudi Arabia, supported by the US army, has flown more than 120,000 sorties over Yemen to attack the poorest Arab country.

Citing some American media, he argued that the US is a partner of Saudi Arabia in committing the crime, as it would not have been possible to attack Yemen without US military, intelligence and arm supports.

Iran' support for the Houthis is exaggerated, Mousavian said, as those who are familiar with history know the fact that Houthis had been governing Yemen for about a millennium. Therefore, they are not a group or mercenaries by a foreign country, rather, they are part of Yemeni people, Mousavian added.

The only time throughout history the Yemeni Houthis turned to Iran was the time when Saudi Arabia attacked their country in March 2015, he said, adding that it was Saudi Arabia that pushed the Houthis towards Iran.

Security of both Saudi Arabia and Yemen is important and affects that of the region, Mousavian concluded, adding that the only solution to the crisis is diplomacy not war.