Yemen government set to meet in Riyadh for crisis talks
Talks will focus on Aden takeover, alliance’s pro-stability efforts
Dubai: Yemen’s internationally-recognised government will hold later Monday a crisis meeting in the Saudi capital Riyadh more than a week after Southern Transitional Council (STC) forces took control of the Yemeni southern city of Aden, the temporary capital government, Saudi television Al Arabiya reported.
The meeting will be held in the Yemeni embassy in Riyadh, the television said, citing unnamed sources.
The government will discuss attacks by the STC, a self-created body seeking self-rule for South Yemen, on state institutions, according to the report.
The meeting will also look at efforts by an Arab alliance co-led by the UAE and Saudi Arabia to restore stability and security to Aden, the sources said.
On August 10, the STC forces wrested control of government military sites and state institutions in the port city of Aden.
In response, the alliance urged the separatist forces to pull out from the seized posts. Saudi Arabia also proposed for the government and the STC to meet on its soil to defuse tensions that are seen as distracting the Arab alliance from its military campaign against Yemen’s Iran-aligned Al Houthi militants.
The STC loyalists have reportedly withdrawn from some of the state institutions under their control in Aden, while the government insists on full pullout before any talks with the STC can be held.
Last week, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed, the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and the Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, visited Saudi Arabia where he called on Yemeni sides to focus on dialogue to end the Aden unrest.
UAE State Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr Anwar Gargash also said that the alliance with Saudi Arabia is a “well-established fact” and underpins stability in the region.
Aden became the seat of the Yemeni government after Al Houthi extremists overran the capital Sana’a in late 2014, plunging the impoverished country in a ruinous war.
Jeddah talks
Meanwhile, coalition talks with Yemen’s Southern Transitional Council appeared to be delayed, three Yemeni sources told Reuters. A Yemeni official said that the full withdrawal of STC forces will be a prerequisite for talks.
So far, southern forces have refused to quit military camps, while vacating other state institutions, as they believe it would weaken their hand, the sources said.