Yemen's Southern Transitional Council abandons self-rule declaration

Group says it is focused on supporting Riyadh Agreement

An STC spokesperson said the group would commit fully to the Riyadh Agreement. Reuters

Yemen's Southern Transitional Council has abandoned its declaration of self-rule and pledged to implement a Saudi-brokered peace agreement with the government, a spokesman said on Wednesday.

The STC would allow the power-sharing Riyadh Agreement to go ahead, spokesman Nizar Haitham wrote on Twitter.

“We have achieved our goals,” Mr Haitham said. “We affirm the continuing and deepening of our strategic partnership with the Arab Coalition.”

The deal, signed in Riyadh last autumn, set the stage for an end to a long-running rivalry between the Yemeni government and the secessionist STC.

The deal was thrown into disarray this year as disagreements between the two sides led to the STC seizing control of the southern port city of Aden, the interim seat of the government, igniting clashes across southern Yemen.

Saudi Arabia declared on Wednesday that it had proposed a plan to accelerate the deal, which calls for a new government to be formed in 30 days and the appointment of a governor and security director for Aden, the official Saudi Press Agency reported.

The UAE on Wednesday welcomed the developments towards implementing the Riyadh Agreement.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation commended the leadership of Saudi Arabia for "enabling progress in the agreement’s implementation and its support for efforts to serve the interests of the brotherly Yemeni people" and contribute towards the Yemen's stability and security.

The Ministry stressed the importance of solidarity and co-operation among Yemeni forces to prioritise national interest and confront threats facing Yemen, including the war against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

It said it was "standing by the Yemeni people and backing their legitimate aspirations for development, security and peace within the context of the UAE's policy to support the interests of peoples in the region".

Yemen has been gripped in war since 2014, when the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, from the government of President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi.

As the war rages, the population is battling hunger, cholera, locusts and the coronavirus.

Parties to the Riyadh Agreement hope it can bring order and help to tackle the crises.

The Saudi deal addressed commitments that were obstacles for months, such as forming a government of 24 ministers with equal representation for northerners and southerners, including the STC.

It also asked for the withdrawal of rival forces from Aden and the flashpoint southern province of Abyan.

The blueprint gives Yemen’s Prime Minister, Maeen Saeed, the mandate to form a government over the next month.

Yemen’s government spokesman Rajih Badi welcomed the Saudi initiative.

Prince Khalid bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s deputy minister of defence, said that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s efforts to implement the Riyadh deal "have succeeded” and will "achieve lasting peace, security and prosperity for Yemen”.

On Tuesday, the UN special envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths, painted a bleak picture of the country at the Security Council.

UN-mediated peace talks between the rebels and government failed to produce an agreement, Mr Griffiths said.

The Houthis are pushing fiercely into the oil-rich province of Marib “with profound humanitarian and economic consequences”.

“I do not wish to sugar-coat things,” he said.

Mr Griffiths said the country could plunge at any moment into “a new phase of prolonged escalation, uncontrolled spread of Covid-19 and economic decline”.