The chairman of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council indicated the government does not want a deal with the Houthis.

"We are not for a new truce that reproduces previous experiences," Rashad al-Alimi said, and instead called for "lasting and sustainable peace" based on a state that holds a monopoly on weapons and sovereignty.

He added that the internationally recognised government has concluded that the Houthis amount to "a project of war and destruction, not a project of peace".

Alimi also expressed that the international focus has shifted from how to accommodate the Houthis to how to protect Yemen, international navigation, the region and international peace and security.

"There will be no action by the Houthi militias from now on without a response or comprehensive deterrence," he said. "Our strategic objective is to restore state institutions and bring down the (Houthi) coup."