Aden, Rajab 03, 1439, March 20, 2018, SPA -- The Yemeni government welcomed the statement made by Martin Griffith in Oman who is making his debut as the new UN envoy to Yemen, citing his confirmation on the importance of working hard to facilitate a comprehensive political process based on the GCC initiative and its executive mechanism, the outcomes of the National Dialogue Conference, and Security Council resolution 2216 in 2015. Yemeni Deputy Prime Minister, and Foreign Minister Abdulmalik Al-Makhlafi told the Yemen News Agency that the Yemeni government welcomes the start of Griffith's mission, confirms its support for him and also pay tribute to his predecessor for the sizable gains so far restored in Yemen. Makhlafi pointed out that the former envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh has exerted a lot of effort to achieve peace in Yemen but it is regrettable that he left his post before the fruits of these efforts are ripe. --SPA 18:30 LOCAL TIME 15:30 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w646562