The UAE has stated that 2023 must be the year when peace is achieved in Yemen and that all international efforts must be mobilized to bring an end to the conflict, meet the legitimate aspirations of the Yemeni people and strengthen peace and stability in the country and the region. The Emirates praised the efforts of Hans Grundberg, the UN Special Envoy for Yemen, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the mediation of the Sultanate of Oman.
It was during the participation of Noura Al Kaabi, Minister of State, in the donor conference organized by the Kingdom of Sweden and the Swiss Confederation, in cooperation with the United Nations (UN) in Geneva, to mobilize support for the Humanitarian Response Plan for Yemen 2023. Also present were the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, the head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs of the Swiss Confederation, Ignazio Cassis, and the Swedish Minister for International Cooperation for Development and Foreign Trade, Johan Forssell, as well as such as numerous donor countries and international humanitarian organizations.
Al Kaabi affirmed the UAE’s commitment to helping the Yemeni people, stating that since 2015, the UAE has provided Yemen with a total of US$6.6 billion in aid and a deposit of US$300 million to bolster the local currency. Continuing this approach, and in addition to multilateral peace and development efforts in Yemen, the UAE is also supporting reconstruction and rehabilitation projects this year with approximately US$325 million. Projects aim to improve the health, renewable energy, and agriculture sectors, including a major project to build a dam for irrigation purposes.
“The UAE welcomes the ongoing negotiations to pressure the Houthi militias to show the necessary flexibility to ensure the success of the peace process. We thank the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for its continued humanitarian assistance and its efforts to advance the political process in Yemen,” said Al Kaabi.
The minister concluded by noting that the UAE believes that the time has come to change the focus of managing the conflict to find a solution to it, starting with renewing the truce and alleviating the humanitarian conditions experienced by the people of Yemen and the catastrophic consequences of the war. In this vein, Al Kaabi noted the importance of transitioning from emergency aid to recovery in order to promote sustainable development in Yemen.
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