SANAA (Debriefer)--The Houthi group on Wednesday said it has signed an agreement with the UN for urgent maintenance and assessment of the Safer tanker which is decaying off Yemen's western coast.
On Tuesday, the UN said it received a letter confirming that the group was ready to welcome UN experts to board and assess the tanker.
The tanker has had no maintenance since the armed conflict started in the country six years ago. It is carrying more than 1.1 million barrels of crude. Its equipment and systems are deteriorating, leaving it at risk of spilling crude into the Red Sea, sinking or exploding.
The agreement was reached after long discussions on technical issues between the national consultative team and the Office of the UN Envoy to Yemen and the United Nations Office for Project Services, a source at the Houthi supreme economic committee said, according to the Sana-based Saba news agency.
The UNOPS has refused to provide a Nitrogen generator as an alternative for the tanker's inert gas system among the equipment to be brought with the experts to prevent a possible explosion of the tanker, the source said.
The UNOPS is focusing on maintenance to prevent an oil spill, the source said, adding, "whatever their real intentions are, we welcome progress on this issue and hope the UN will send the experts immediately".
