GCC: Yemenis Looking Forward to All Parties Joining Riyadh Consultations

The GCC headquarters in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The GCC headquarters in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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GCC: Yemenis Looking Forward to All Parties Joining Riyadh Consultations

The GCC headquarters in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The GCC headquarters in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The intra-Yemeni consultations are set to kick off on Tuesday with the aim of reaching a political solution to the crisis in Yemen. They are being sponsored by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GGC) and will be held at its Riyadh headquarters.

GCC Ambassador to Yemen Sarhan Al-Minaikher said Sunday that all Yemeni parties are invited to the consultations.

"We expect everyone to attend without exception," he remarked in an interview to Asharq News television.

The Yemenis have sat individually with several international and United Nations agencies, but they have never sat together to directly talk to each other about their problems, he went on to say.

The GCC consultations aim to bring together all Yemenis so that they can come up with a clear roadmap that ends the war and leads to peace, construction and development, he added.

The Yemeni people "deserve a dignified life" and they are an integral part of the Gulf and Arab world, stressed Al-Minaikher.

The Yemenis are hoping that no party will skip the consultations, he stated.

The consultations will kick off on Tuesday and conclude on April 7.



Egyptian Government Approves Formation of Higher Coordination Council with Saudi Arabia

The formation of the Higher Coordination Council reflects the level of partnership between Saudi Arabia and Egypt. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The formation of the Higher Coordination Council reflects the level of partnership between Saudi Arabia and Egypt. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Egyptian Government Approves Formation of Higher Coordination Council with Saudi Arabia

The formation of the Higher Coordination Council reflects the level of partnership between Saudi Arabia and Egypt. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The formation of the Higher Coordination Council reflects the level of partnership between Saudi Arabia and Egypt. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

In an effort to strengthen the partnership between Egypt and Saudi Arabia, the Egyptian government approved on Wednesday the establishment of a higher joint coordination council.

On September 10, 2024, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel-Aty held a joint news conference with his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, during which he announced that the two countries were in the final stages of launching the Egyptian-Saudi Higher Coordination Council, chaired by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

He emphasized that the council would serve as a comprehensive framework for deepening bilateral relations and fostering collaboration in politics, economics, trade, development, and investment, aligning with the interests of both nations’ peoples.

In its Wednesday session, Egypt’s Cabinet approved the decision to establish the council. According to a government statement, the body will seek to “intensify communication and enhance cooperation between Egypt and Saudi Arabia in areas of mutual interest.”

The council, as outlined by the statement, will include ministers and officials from both countries covering relevant sectors. It will convene regular meetings alternately in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, with provisions for extraordinary meetings as needed.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Ayman Mohseb, deputy chairman of the Arab Affairs Committee in Egypt’s House of Representatives, said that the move reflects the advanced level of partnership between the two nations, describing the council as a “cornerstone for activating relations and expanding cooperation in various fields.”

“This step will significantly advance cooperation across diverse domains, driven by the political will of the two countries’ leaderships,” Mohsab said, adding that the new body would facilitate coordination between Cairo and Riyadh on a wide range of regional issues and areas of mutual interest.

During a meeting with Saudi Minister of Culture Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan on Tuesday, El-Sisi reaffirmed Egypt’s “pride in its historic relations with Saudi Arabia, both at the leadership and popular levels, and across all sectors.”