(Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his Yemeni counterpart on Tuesday that it was important to secure freedom of movement in disputed areas of Yemen amid hopes a U.N. brokered truce could produce a lasting peace in the country.

"The Secretary specifically noted the importance of ensuring the freedom of movement of people and goods through contested areas, like the city of Taiz, Yemen's third largest city, where hundreds of thousands of Yemenis are suffering," State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a statement.

(Reporting by Costas Pitas in Los Angeles; Editing by Sandra Maler)