GCC meetings in Riyadh to weigh Yemen aidSaudi-Yemeni talks in Riyadh ahead of aid meet

GCC meetings in Riyadh to weigh Yemen aidSaudi-Yemeni talks in Riyadh ahead of aid meet
RIYADH (Agencies)

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh arrived in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday for talks ahead of a crucial meeting this weekend on aiding his embattled Sanaa government, SPA news agency reported.

Saleh met King Abdullah and senior political, military and intelligence officials at Abdullah's desert camp outside the capital, underscoring Riyadh's concern over stability in its southern neighbor.

Abdullah stressed Saudi Arabia's "keenness on Yemen's stability, security and territorial integrity," SPA said.

GCC meeting on Yemen

The Saudi government has long been Yemen's main financial supporter and will play a key role in organizing international and Gulf support for Sanaa.

On Saturday, the Riyadh-based Gulf Cooperative Council will launch a two-day meeting together with delegates from the United States, Europe and other countries to weigh how best to help Yemen, the region's poorest nation.

The meeting is a follow-up to January's London conference on Yemen, when major powers gathered to address the financial and development issues underpinning Yemen's troubles.

The country faces numerous difficulties, including a rising al-Qaeda threat, Shiite rebels in the north and separatists in the south.

International assistance is crucial for Yemen as it would help foster reforms and the development of its fragile economy to address grievances that are at the heart of its instability.

About 35 percent of Yemen's 23 million people live in poverty.

"Saudi Arabia is the GCC's most influential member and Yemen's closest neighbor. We hope that it will lead by example and use its influence within the GCC to assist our country," A Yemeni diplomat said.

"This will prove crucial not just within the GCC but also with other international donors to deliver on their commitments made towards Yemen," he added.

Saleh was expected to assure King Abdullah that Yemen's army would be more vigilant in monitoring the border to shore a ceasefire between Saudi Arabia and Yemeni Shiite rebels and prevent al-Qaeda militants from sneaking into the kingdom.
Sucked into fighting
Riyadh was sucked into fighting with the rebels in November when the insurgents seized some Saudi territory, complaining that Yemeni troops had been allowed to use Saudi land to launch attacks against them. At least 113 Saudi soldiers were killed in the conflict.

"The security of Yemen means the security of the Arabian peninsula and the Gulf," Saudi Al-Watan newspaper wrote in a commentary about Saleh's visit.

Yemen, which agreed to a ceasefire with the northern Shiite rebels this month, is due to deploy along the border according to the terms of the ceasefire. The Yemeni diplomat said Saleh would also discuss with Riyadh a prisoner return, but did not elaborate.

Yemeni rebels have handed over three Saudi soldiers under the terms of the ceasefire with Sanaa, and were expected to release two more captive soldiers. Riyadh said on Thursday that it was holding 500 'infiltrators', but did not disclose their identities, why they were held or when they would be freed.

Western powers and Riyadh worry that government control could collapse in Yemen, enabling al-Qaeda to strengthen its presence there and use it as a base for new attacks.

In addition to the northern insurgency, Yemen is also facing separatist sentiment in the south. Sanaa declared an open war on al-Qaeda last month after the group's Yemen-based regional wing claimed responsibility for a failed bomb attack on a Detroit-bound plane.