Yemen is beset with a number of challenges at present. There is a rising tension in the south, where a secessionist movement feeds on a sense of inequality and resentment at perceived bureaucratic corruption, as well as the threat of terrorism, tribal unrest and lawlessness. Add to this an economic crisis in what was the poorest Arab state to start with, and it is clear that the government of President Ali Abdullah Saleh faces formidable challenges as it tries to ensure a stable, united country. Saudi-Yemeni relations have, in the past, sometimes been bumpy but that is certainly not the case at present. An unstable, disunited Yemen is the last thing the Kingdom can afford on its southern borders. The reasons are obvious. Quite apart from the fact that there are so many Saudis of Yemeni origin and single tribes divided between the two countries, there is the reality of a border all too porous. There are the terrorists in Yemen who could so easily target the Kingdom (and have done so in the past); there is smuggling; there is the uncontrolled flow of economic migrants hoping to find work in Saudi cities, coming not just from a Yemen facing hard economic times but from the Horn of Africa and beyond. These are issues of the greatest concern for Saudi Arabia and the best place to deal with them is on the ground, in Yemen, before they become an issue in the Kingdom.
President Saleh’s visit to Riyadh this week may seem to have been a bolt out of the blue, but faced with such challenges, it is no great surprise. Whatever political differences there might have been in the past, the two countries have let bygones be bygones and today are united in a common struggle — against Al-Qaeda, against the smuggling of guns, explosives and drugs (even trafficking of children sent for organized begging in the Kingdom), and against Yemeni instability and economic hardship that result in its problems spreading beyond its frontiers. The common struggle has made ties stronger than ever before.
Our fate is one. A power vacuum in Yemen, stemming either from a struggle by the south for independence or a general breakdown of government authority, would pose a serious threat to the Kingdom — and not just Saudi Arabia, but the region as a whole.
For that reason, Saudi Arabia firmly supports Yemeni unity and can be relied on to help alleviate the economic woes that undoubtedly exacerbate the country’s current political tensions, not least by encouraging its future membership of the GCC. The Middle East has enough problems as it is without another. In any event, Saudi Arabia’s prime political objectives in the Arab world are peace and consensus. To that end, relations with Syria have been improved by leaps and bounds and work is in hand to try and achieve the same with Libya. Without Arab unanimity, what chance is there of dealing with the Palestinian issue, let alone terrorism? A stable, secure, united Yemen is as important as a stable, secure, united Iraq or a stable, secure, united Lebanon. The latter two, however, are far bigger problems than Saudi Arabia alone can resolve. Yemen should be easier to help.
Yes, freeze settlements
The Israeli daily Haaretz commented on Jewish settlements yesterday. Excerpts:
The Obama administration is demanding that Israel fulfill its commitments under the road map and freeze all settlement construction, including natural growth, as well as evacuate all outposts founded since March 2001. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is willing to evacuate outposts, but is insisting on expanding settlements in the West Bank, citing natural growth, as previous Israeli governments have done. The settlements threaten to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and the implementation of the partition solution, which is essential for preserving Israel’s future as a Jewish and democratic state. Defending the settlements requires Israel to operate a complex system of access roads and roadblocks, which make Palestinians’ lives more difficult and inflict serious financial harm on them. Every Israeli government since 1967 has insisted on building and developing the settlements, causing the country severe political damage. The massive resources invested in sustaining and enlarging the settlements come at the expense of other national goals, like the development of the Negev and the Galilee.
For all these reasons, the demand to freeze settlement construction is just and wise. The Obama administration is refusing to accept the natural growth excuse that Israel has made to previous American administrations. Under their protection, Israel has continually increased the number of settlers in the territories and the infrastructure meant for their use — primarily the segregated road system and the invasive route of the separation fence, which is intended to facilitate Israel’s de facto annexation of part of the West Bank. Netanyahu wants the Obama administration to continue the policy of the Bush administration, which ignored wide-scale Israeli construction in the territories, especially in East Jerusalem and its environs.
