MUKALLA, Yemen, 1 June 2006 — The Saudi-Yemeni Coordination Council, which is to meet here today under the chairmanship of Crown Prince Sultan and Yemeni Prime Minister Abdul Qader Bajammal, will discuss vital issues including the prospect of setting up a joint investment bank and establishing a free-trade zone between the two countries, sources said.
Speaking to reporters after meeting Saudi and Yemeni businessmen here yesterday, Bajammal said he would support the setting up of a Saudi-Yemeni bank to finance joint investment projects.
Bajammal said the businessmen had asked him to implement their demands without any bureaucratic hindrance. In response, the Yemeni prime minister assured them that he would voice their demands at the council meeting.
Prince Sultan is expected to arrive here today at the head of a high-level delegation including Interior Minister Prince Naif and Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal. Prince Sultan will to oversee the signing of final maps marking the joint border of the two countries.
Demarcation of the 1,845-km Saudi-Yemeni border was completed in 2004 after 824 markers were put in place. Last April, both countries received maps developed by a German company marking the borderline based on a 2000 treaty.
Bajammal said the businessmen had also demanded the release of some SR500 million allocated by the Saudi Fund for Development to carry out development projects in Yemen. Saudi and Yemeni businessmen propose a free trade zone at the council meeting to boost trade relations between the two countries.
The businessmen also wanted the coordination council to give a green signal to the formation of a joint company with a capital of SR100 million to carry out large-scale infrastructure projects in Yemen. Another proposal is to grant open visas to businessmen to ease movement between the two countries.
The joint council meeting will discuss several issues including economic ties, efforts to fight terrorism and cross-border drug and arms smuggling and infiltration of terrorists, Yemeni officials said.
The meeting will also discuss Yemen’s drive to join the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Referring to the standoff between Iran and Western countries on Tehran’s nuclear program, Bajammal said every country has a right to obtain and research nuclear technology. However, developing weapons of mass destruction amounted to wasting a country’s resources, he added.
