The UAE has participated in Riyadh Conference on "Saving Yemen and Building the Federal State," with a delegation including Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of State; Ahmed Abdul Rehman Al Jarman, Assistant Foreign Minister for Political Affairs; Jasim Al Khloufi, Director of Arab Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA); Ahmed Ali Al Baloushi, Director of Gulf Cooperation Council Affairs at MoFA; and Mohammed Saeed Al Dhaheri, Ambassador of the UAE to Saudi Arabia.

The UAE delegation met with Yemen's President, Abed-Rabbo Mansour Hadi, in the presence of Yemeni Vice President and Prime Minister Khalid Bahah, and Foreign Minister Riyadh Yaseen.

As he received Dr. Al Jaber, President Hadi hailed the UAE's supporting stances for the legitimate rights of the Yemeni people and their rejection of the coup against Yemen's constitutional legitimacy and foreign interference in the country's internal affairs, as well as the need for reinstating the legitimate institutions, establishing stability and building a modern state.

Minister Al Jaber said the directives of the UAE leadership on Yemen are based on consistency between Yemen and other Arab states that materialised during the Gulf Cooperation Council's (GCC's) initiative.

The solution in Yemen, he explained, should be based on the outcome of Yemen's national dialogue and international legitimacy reflected by UN Security Council Resolution 2216.

He noted that it is necessary to implement the decisions of the Riyadh Conference in order to lay a solid foundation for a modern state, bringing the armed conflict to an end, and removing militias and any armed groups from all the country's cities including the capital Sanaa, and initiating measures for national reconciliation.

Dr. Al Jaber said the UAE is keen on restoring constitutional legitimacy in Yemen, bringing conflicts to an end and establishing stability, the main factor that allows for concentrating efforts on economic and social development.

The three-day Riyadh conference, which brought together delegates from the GCC countries, different Yemeni factions and representatives of the G14 group of ambassadors, ended Tuesday with a declaration that called for the formation of special forces to protect Yemen's cities engulfed in the fighting.

The Riyadh Declaration also called for an end to the rebellion, reinstating the state's institutions and restoring looted arms.

It also called for the formation of safe zones where legitimate Yemeni institutions could operate and for raising security forces in all Yemeni governorates to ensure security and stability.

The Riyadh Declaration will serve as a reference document for the political efforts being made during the transitional period to secure a political solution to the crisis in Yemen. It urged the Security Council to implement its Resolution No. 2216 and all other relevant resolutions regarding Yemen.

The Riyadh Declaration also called for initiating contacts with Yemen's legitimate institutions and international financial bodies to demand a financial and diplomatic boycott of the militia that carried out the coup d'état in Sanna and all other Yemeni cities, monitor financial transfers to Yemen, and freeze the assets of the leaders of the militia and their partners as per UNSC Resolution 2216 and other relevant resolutions.
Source: WAM