Saudi Arabia was looking for a quick military victory when it launched and led a military intervention in Yemen in March.

The war continues to rage nine months on, and its financial costs are seen weighing down on the kingdom’s budget for public infrastructure projects and wages, among others.

The latest round of UN-brokered peace talks did not even succeed in getting the warring factions into the same room. Only the UN left the peace talks with some sense of optimism, if only because the parties agreed to resume talks in two weeks’ time, even while fighting continues on the ground.

The Saudi and US-backed Yemeni government led by Abdrabbu Mansour al-Hadi are asking for a full withdrawal of Houthi fighters, reportedly backed by Iran and which formed an alliance with forces loyal to the former president Ali Abdullah al-Saleh, from key cities, including the release of their prisoners. The rebels, on the other hand, are asking for an end to the military intervention prior to releasing their prisoners.

None of the potential scenarios look promising. The ultimate goal of the Saudi-led military campaign is to force the Houthi-Saleh alliance to surrender, since restoring the legitimate government into power is tantamount to eliminating if not minimising threats to its own security. This strategy requires an indefinite commitment of resources for a campaign whose endgame is uncertain at best, at a time when low oil prices guarantee government revenues are lower than they have ever been in recent times.

If Saudi Arabia gives in to pressure from the international community to accept an unconditional ceasefire, which is unlikely at this stage, then it would give a chance for the Houthi-Saleh group to gain control in more areas in Yemen.

The biggest collateral damage of the war, however, is the Yemeni people themselves. Impoverished even before the war, the majority of Yemenis are now faced with an overwhelming misery arising from shortage of food and medical supply. The ultimate fate of their country is also currently being decided by two external forces that refuse to directly engage in a constructive dialogue to reach a much-needed political solution to alleviate their suffering.