Sanaa: Yemen's Foreign Minister, Afrah al-Zouba, has declared that Yemen is not an 'Iranian bargaining chip' or a venue for settling regional scores, emphasizing the country's strong partnership with Saudi Arabia. Her statements were made during an interview published by Yemen's official Saba news agency as government forces and Iran-backed Houthis continued their confrontations across several fronts in the nation. According to Anadolu Agency, al-Zouba asserted that restoring Yemeni state institutions is crucial for Yemen's security, regional stability, and the safety of maritime routes. The government is responding to recent developments with responsibility and commitment. She acknowledged the challenges and suffering faced by Yemenis, emphasizing the government's role in addressing shortcomings, strengthening state institutions, protecting civilians, and assisting those affected. Al-Zouba also outlined a comprehensive approach to deterrence that extends beyond military action. This approach includes prote cting civilians, addressing vulnerabilities, restoring capabilities, employing diplomacy while maintaining state institutions and services, and expanding humanitarian efforts. In discussing navigation in the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb, al-Zouba highlighted the broader threat beyond disrupting shipping, identifying it as an attempt to impose conditions by an armed group. She affirmed that military control does not legitimize the right to control navigation and stressed that Yemeni sovereignty remains unchanged by force. Sustainable stability, she noted, requires empowering the state along its coasts, ports, and islands, and enhancing cooperation with littoral states and partners in maritime intelligence, port security, coast guard training, and combating smuggling and organized crime. Al-Zouba praised Saudi Arabia for its unwavering support for the Yemeni people and their legitimate leadership, describing the partnership with the Kingdom as firm. She emphasized that Saudi Arabia's support represents a critica l pillar for Yemen's security and regional stability, stating that Saudi security is bolstered by a stable Yemen. Additionally, she highlighted Egypt as a key Arab partner, noting ongoing coordination with Cairo on Yemen, Red Sea security, and bilateral relations. The core of Yemen's crisis, according to al-Zouba, is the militias' coup against the state and their imposition of authority by force. She described the conflict as between the national state project and the Houthi 'non-state project,' which seeks to use Yemen as a platform to threaten regional and international interests. Internationally, she welcomed Russia's support at the UN Security Council for freedom of navigation and opposition to attacks on commercial vessels, appreciating Russia's urging of the Houthis to respect neighboring states' sovereignty. Yemen seeks to develop its longstanding relations with Moscow in political, economic, and developmental fields. Regarding regional developments, al-Zouba reiterated the Yemeni government's reject ion of Iranian support that enhances Houthi military capabilities and uses Yemen's geography to threaten neighboring countries and maritime routes. She firmly stated that Yemen is not a compensation for losses in other arenas or a bargaining chip for regional negotiations. Her comments come amid escalating fighting on multiple Yemeni fronts. The army reported that 13 soldiers were killed in recent clashes with the Houthis in Taiz and Lahj. A senior Houthi commander and six escorts were also killed on the Kahboub front near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Renewed clashes are occurring in Taiz, Marib, Al-Jawf, Al-Bayda, and Lahj, marking a military escalation since early July, the most intense since the relative calm following the April 2022 truce. Fighting intensified in September, with the Houthis capturing key locations in Al Hudaydah and Taiz, including the strategic city of Mokha and Perim Island in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Yemen has been embroiled in conflict since the Houthis seized the national capital, Sa naa, and several provinces in September 2014, prompting a Saudi-led Arab coalition intervention in March 2015 to support the internationally recognized government.