President Al-Zubaidi Discusses Recent Humanitarian and Political Developments with US Ambassador

President Aidarous Qassem Al-Zubaidi, President of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) and Vice Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council (PLC), met virtually on Monday morning with Mr. Steven H. Fagin, U.S. Ambassador to Yemen.

The meeting, which was attended by Mr. Amr Ali Al-Beidh, member of the STC's Presidium and Special Representative of the President of the STC, and Mr. Anis Al-Sharafi, Deputy Director of the Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Authority (FAEA), reviewed the latest developments in the dire humanitarian situation in the country, with a focus on the deteriorating economic conditions and the decline in services. In this regard, President Al-Zubaidi highlighted the importance of providing urgent support to the government to enable it to provide basic services to citizens, especially electricity and water.

Politically, the meeting discussed the efforts being made to revive the UN-led political process to end the conflict in the country and bring about peace, as well as the ongoing Houthi escalation in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait and its repercussions on the humanitarian situation. In this context, President Al-Zubaidi reiterated the support of the PLC and the forces within its framework for the regional and international efforts aimed at achieving sustainable peace, noting at the same time that it is not reasonable to talk about a road map in light of the ongoing Houthi threat to international maritime navigation.

President Al-Zubaidi called on the United States to intensify its efforts to protect international shipping lanes in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab and to firmly confront the Houthi's reckless actions aimed at undermining the efforts made to end the war and durably bring about peace in the region.

Security-wise, the meeting discussed strengthening cooperation with the United States and its partners to support and enhance the capabilities of the security services, especially the Coast Guard, to enable them to carry out their tasks in securing territorial waters and contributing to combating Houthi piracy targeting commercial vessels in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab Strait, and the Gulf of Aden.

For his part, Ambassador Fagin renewed the US government's commitment to providing support and assistance to the PLC and the government to enable them to carry out their tasks towards the citizens, reiterating the United States' rejection of the Houthi escalation in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait and its commitment to securing international maritime navigation and supporting regional and international efforts to bring about peace to the country.