Saudi and Omani delegations have held talks with Houthi officials in Sanaa, Yemen’s capital.
This is as Riyadh seeks a permanent ceasefire to end its military involvement in the country’s long-running war.
The visit shows progress in the negotiations between Riyadh and Sanaa, which are mediated by Oman and take place concurrently with UN peace efforts.
Oman, which borders Yemen, has worked to mediate disputes between Yemen’s warring parties and, more generally, between Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United States.
The envoys, who landed late on Saturday, met with the head of Houthi Supreme Political Council, Mahdi al-Mashat, in Sanaa’s presidential palace.
Both sides will negotiate ending hostilities and the lifting of a Saudi-led blockade on Yemeni ports, it added.
The top Saudi and Iranian diplomats met again in Beijing on Thursday, pledging to work together to bring “security and stability” to a turbulent region.
The Houthis seized Sanaa in 2014, triggering the conflict with the internationally recognized government which has been backed for eight years by a military coalition led by Riyadh.
A truce announced roughly a year ago has significantly reduced active hostilities within Yemen, and is still largely respected even though it officially expired in October.
The Saudis and Houthis had agreed in principle on a six-month truce to pave the way for three months of talks on establishing a two-year “transition” for the war-torn country, AFP said on Saturday citing a Yemeni government source.
The deal is expected to fulfill key Houthi goals, including paying salaries of civil servants in Houthi-controlled areas and lifting operational restrictions on Houthi-controlled airports and ports.
