JEDDAH, 31 May — Interior Minister Prince Naif said yesterday Yemeni workers in the Kingdom would receive all care and support from the government. “We wish the majority of (expatriate) workers in the Kingdom were from Yemen,” he added.
Prince Naif was speaking to reporters after holding talks with Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The meeting was attended by Minister of State Dr. Mutlab Al-Nafeesa and Saudi Ambassador to Sanaa Muhammad Al-Qahtani.
President Saleh arrived here on Tuesday and met with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd, Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, and Prince Sultan, second deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation.
President Saleh yesterday wrapped up his 24-hour visit during which he also discussed the situation in the Palestinian territories and perspectives on economic cooperation between Riyadh and Sanaa with the Saudi leadership.
The visit comes a week after Crown Prince Abdullah visited Yemen to participate in celebrations to mark the 10th anniversary the country’s unification.
Asked whether he had discussed the issue of Yemeni workers with the Yemeni president, Prince Naif said: “We believe that taking care of our Yemeni brethren who are residing in the Kingdom is our duty. They can feel at home as they are in their own country. We will provide them with all facilities.”
The interior minister said the Yemeni president knows this and the Kingdom’s stand on related issues and “we’ll not deviate from the directives we have received from King Fahd, Crown Prince Abdullah and the Yemeni president.”
He described the Saudi-Yemeni border treaty signed last June as a good example for all Arab countries to emulate in settling disputes. “The border treaty disproved what others were telling (about Saudi-Yemen relations),” Prince Naif said, and condemned their efforts “to fish in troubled waters.”
Asked about his feelings on the occasion of the forthcoming anniversary of the border agreement on June 12, 2000, Prince Naif said: “It’s a very happy occasion for us all. One year has passed after the agreement and we are now enjoying its fruits.” He underscored the Saudi-Yemeni relations and said: “We are one country and one leadership.”
The two countries signed a contract worth $986 million with German firm Hansa Luftbild to stake out their common border in detail.
The border treaty put an end to a six-decade-old border dispute. Between 1971 and 1987, Yemen received a total of $3 billion aid from Saudi Arabia, half of it going to the annual state budget. Remittances from Yemeni workers in the Gulf fell to $227 million from $1.5 billion in 1990, official Yemeni figures indicated.
President Saleh visited Durrat Al-Aroos, a resort in Abhur on the Red Sea coast. He also met with a number of Saudi businessmen. Prince Abdullah yesterday hosted a luncheon in honor of the Yemeni president and his delegation at Al-Salam Palace.
