RIYADH: The Houthis said on Tuesday they wanted to strengthen ties with Iran as the militia's officials appeared with Tehran's new representative to the area of Yemen under their control.
The Houthis seized much of northern Yemen in 2014 after the militia forced the internationally-recognized government to flee the capital Sanaa.
The militia's self proclaimed foreign minister Hesham Sharaf Abdallah said it wanted to strengthen bilateral ties with Iran in various fields, the group's media outlets reported.
Iran's representative, Hassan Eyrlo, said Iran would make every effort to achieve peace in Yemen, as he presented his diplomatic credentials.
His arrival in Yemen this month has sparked anger both domestically and from abroad.
Yemen’s foreign ministry last week wrote to the UN Security Council accusing the Iranians of violating “international law.”
The US said Eyrlo was a member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and has links to Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Iran has been the main supported of the Houthis, supplying them with weapons and money throughout the conflict.
The strategy is part of Tehran's region-wide approach of supporting proxy forces to gain influence in countries against its rivals.
