JEDDAH, 2 June — The Kingdom and Yemen on Thursday signed an agreement in Sanaa for electricity cooperation and promoting commercial and industrial investment and exchanging expertise in the sector.
The agreement was signed by Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Tuwaijeri, undersecretary at the Saudi Ministry of Industry and Electricity, and his Yemeni counterpart Ahmad Al-Eeni.
Al-Tuwaijeri said his talks with Yemeni officials in Sanaa were successful. He said a study would be conducted shortly on linking the two countries by a power grid on a commercial basis.
Al-Eeni considered the electricity cooperation accord as a significant step in line with the two countries’ plan to establish a partnership relation.
The agreement reflects the growing relations between the two neighbors who signed a landmark border treaty last June, ending a long-standing dispute and opening a new era in bilateral ties.
Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, visited Yemen last month to take part in the country’s unification anniversary.
Yemeni President Abdullah Saleh visited the Kingdom last week and met with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd, Prince Abdullah and other Saudi leaders.
Meanwhile, a high-level source at the Ministry of Finance and National Economy told Al-Watan newspaper that it would send a letter to the Yemeni authorities protesting an SR200 fee being charged by Yemeni customs on cars entering the country from the Kingdom.
The source said the fee charged by the Yemeni customs department in Haradh was in violation of bilateral agreements which exempt cars and trucks as well as their drivers and assistants from entry fees and taxes.
In a related development, Yemen has announced that it has arrested a criminal wanted by Saudi authorities for involvement in a case in the Kingdom.
The Okaz daily yesterday quoted Yemen’s Interior Minister Rashad Al-Aleemy as saying that the wanted person would be handed over to the Saudi authorities within a few days. (AN)
