UNITED NATIONS - The UN Security Council warned on Friday against attempts to destabilize Yemen with weapons shipments as the country tries to rebuild after two years of upheaval and expressed concern that former president Ali Abdullah Saleh was undermining the process.
The 15-member council said it was ready to consider further measures, including sanctions, "if actions aimed at undermining the Government of National Unity and the political transition continue."
Yemen said its coast guard seized missiles and rockets on Jan. 23 believed to have been sent by Iran. Iran has denied any connection to the weapons, which were found aboard a vessel off the coast in an operation coordinated with the US Navy.
The Security Council has asked its group of experts that monitors compliance with the Iran sanctions, which includes a ban on arms exports, to investigate the incident after Yemen officially complained, Britain's UN Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant told reporters.
"The Security Council expresses concern over reports of money and weapons being brought into Yemen from outside for the purpose of undermining the transition," the Security Council said in a statement.
The council also expressed concern over reports of interference "by individuals in Yemen representing the former regime ... including former president Ali Abdullah Saleh and former vice president Ali Salim Al-Beidh."