Saudi Arabia has expressed regret over the actions of the United Arab Emirates, which Riyadh believes exerted pressure on separatists from Yemen’s Southern Transitional Council (STC) to launch military operations in the country’s eastern provinces near the Saudi border, according to a statement from the Saudi Foreign Ministry.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia expresses its regret over the actions of the brotherly United Arab Emirates in pressuring the forces of the Southern Transitional Council to carry out military operations along the Kingdom’s southern borders, in the Yemeni provinces of Hadhramaut and Al-Mahra,” the ministry said.
The statement also urged the UAE to comply with the Yemeni government’s demand to withdraw its troops from the country within 24 hours. “The Kingdom stresses the importance of the brotherly United Arab Emirates responding to the Yemeni leadership’s call to withdraw its armed forces from the Republic within 24 hours and to cease any military or financial support to parties involved in the Yemeni conflict,” the statement read.
Riyadh, citing information from both Saudi and Yemeni authorities, reiterated its concern that the UAE had pressured the STC to conduct military operations in Hadhramaut and Al-Mahra, near the Kingdom’s border.
The ministry warned that the separatist rebellion in eastern Yemen, backed by the UAE, “poses a threat to the Kingdom’s national security as well as to the security and stability of Yemen and the region.” The statement emphasized that “any act of aggression or threat to national security is a red line. The Kingdom will not hesitate to take all necessary steps and measures to confront and neutralize such threats.”
Saudi Arabia expressed hope that “wisdom, the spirit of brotherhood, and the principles of good neighborliness that unite the Gulf Cooperation Council countries” will prevail and that the UAE will take steps “to preserve bilateral relations.” The ministry stressed that the southern issue in Yemen can only be resolved through negotiations involving all parties, including the STC.
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Based on materials from TASS