Disptues within Saudi-backed Yemeni Presidential Council: Reuters
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The Saudi-backed Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council's members were unable to set their differences aside for their country to access foreign aid that would help ease some of Yemen's crises.
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Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman receives Rashad al-Alimi, Chairman of the Saudi-backed Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, April 7, 2022 (CNN)
Disputes among the members of the new Yemeni presidential council are delaying the approval of reforms required for unlocking $3 billion in financial aid from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates that would help the country with its "dwindling foreign currencies," sources cited by Reuters said.
Upon the forming of the presidential council in April, under the auspices of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi pledged $1 billion each for the Yemeni Central Bank, with the former saying it would grant the country an additional $1 billion for oil derivatives and development.
Ironically, the countries pledging assistance for the besieged country led the coalition that waged the war on Yemen, to begin with, as Saudi Arabia led and the UAE financed the war on Yemen over seven years ago, all with backing from the United States.
The two Gulf states conditioned the aid to reforms by the Saudi-backed authorities in the country, which are related to the management of external finance and domestic revenue.
Rivalries among the members of the Political Leadership Council have caused delays in a parliamentary session aimed at ratifying the council's procedures and allowing it to approve new proclaimed anti-corruption committees and monitor tenders, government officials told Reuters on the condition of anonymity.
The war on Yemen has prompted economic collapse and plunged millions into poverty and pushed them into starvation, as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and their allies imposed a blockade on the country, causing famine and disease.
The blockade on the oil-rich country also made it hard for the government to continue financing the country's trade sector, which is heavily vital for the Gulf state that imports around 90% of its fuel, food, and medicine.
Check out: The looted oil and gas from Yemen
Saudi Arabia bolstered the council's standing, as it handed it power over the country's occupied areas instead of the Yemeni president living in exile as international pressure for ending the war mounts.
A truce was announced between the Saudi-led coalition and the Sanaa government and entered into force on April 2 to be later extended on June 2.
At the time, the UN envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, announced that "under this truce, all offensive military operations, by land, air, and sea, will cease."
However, the Saudi coalition continuously violates the terms of the truce, flying reconnaissance planes, shelling civilians' homes, targeting army and popular committees' sites, as well as seizing Yemeni fuel ships, and looting Yemen's wealth.
