Reuters - A senior Iranian security official has called for dialogue between factions in Yemen to end the conflict there, Iranian state media reported on Saturday.
Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Iran�s Supreme National Security Council, made the comment during a meeting with Oman�s foreign minister, Yusuf bin Alawi, in Tehran.
�The shared view of Iran and Oman about the Yemen crisis is that the war must end quickly with the beginning of a ceasefire, the ending of the siege, sending humanitarian help and the beginning of Yemeni-Yemeni dialogue for the development of new political structures based on the vote and desires of the people of Yemen,� Shamkhani said.
Saudi Arabia and its adversaries in Yemen�s armed Houthi movement are holding secret talks to try to end a three-year-old war that has unleashed a major humanitarian crisis, diplomats and Yemeni political sources have said.
A Saudi-led coalition is fighting to counter the influence of Riyadh�s arch-foe Iran, an ally of the Houthis, who deny any help from Tehran and say they are fighting a revolution against corrupt politicians and Gulf powers in thrall to the West.
Separately, Shamkhani said Iran�s missile program was not up for negotiation and that the Islamic Republic would respond to any American action against a 2015 nuclear deal.
Iran agreed to curbs on its nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of a number of sanctions under the deal.
Britain, France and Germany have proposed fresh EU sanctions on Iran over its ballistic missiles and its role in the war in Syria in a bid to persuade Washington to preserve the deal with Tehran, Reuters reported on Friday.
Reporting By Babak Dehghanpisheh; Editing by Andrew Bolton