JEDDAH: Rashad Al-Alimi, chairman of the newly established Yemeni presidential council met King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during an official visit to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.
Al-Alimi and the council members commended Saudi support for all peace efforts in Yemen and the region, and for the well-being of the Yemeni people.
King Salman reiterated the Kingdom’s support for the council and wished them success in pursuing security and stability for Yemen and its people.
Senior officials from both sides attended the meeting.
Al-Alimi arrived in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah on Wednesday on an official visit to the Kingdom and was received by governor of Makkah region, prince Khaled Al-Faisal, and Mohammed Al Jaber, the Kingdom’s ambassador to Yemen, along with a number of other officials.
Al-Alimi arrived in the Kingdom from the temporary capital, Aden, on an official visit, Yemen’s SABA news agency reported.
Yemen’s internationally recognized presidential council was sworn in last week in the southern port city of Aden, before the parliament in a ceremony attended by foreign ambassadors and the US and UN envoys to Yemen, SABA had said.
On Thursday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Al-Alimi and encouraged the new leader to work toward a lasting peace amid rare bright spots after seven years of devastating war.
Blinken voiced support for a UN-brokered two-month truce between the government and Iranian-backed Houthi rebels that has largely held since April 2, the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
The presidential council was appointed earlier this month after former President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi stepped aside. Hadi transferred his powers and those of his vice president to the council, which will run the country and lead peace talks with the Iran-backed Houthi militia.
