Rabat – Yemen has joined a group of countries that have recently renewed their support for Morocco’s territorial integrity and sovereignty over Western Sahara.
The Yemeni Minister of Foreign Affairs Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak conveyed his country’s full support for Morocco’s territorial integrity during a meeting with his Moroccan counterpart Nasser Bourita on Thursday.
Yemen and Morocco released a joint communique following the meeting that took place on the sidelines of the Ministerial Meeting of the Global Coalition against ISIS in Marrakech.
In the joint statement, the Yemeni official stressed that an end to the Western Sahara dispute can “only be done within the framework of the sovereignty of the Kingdom of Morocco and its national and territorial integrity.”
In addition, the Yemeni official expressed appreciation and gratitude for Morocco’s humanitarian support to Yemen.
The Yemeni official commended King Mohammed VI’s initiative to provide $1million as a contribution to the international solidarity effort during the high-level meeting on the annual response plan for Yemen in March 2021.
Bourita renewed Morocco’s support for Yemen‘s recently established Presidential Leadership Council, expressing hope that it “will be able to carry out its tasks in the best conditions” to complete the transitional phase that preserves Yemen’s sovereignty.
He also emphasized the need for an end to the Yemeni crisis through a political solution in accordance with UN resolutions.
Yemen and Morocco also agreed to reinforce cooperation on different bilateral and regional challenges.
Yemen has been embroiled in a devastating conflict over the past years between a Saudi-led coalition, which Morocco left in 2019, and Houthi rebels from Northern Yemen. The power vacuum left by the war has seen the country experienced one of the worst humanitarian disasters in the world.
The UN said that 80% of the 21.1 million population is in need of humanitarian aid and protection.
“More than 14 million people are in acute need and more than three million people have been displaced from their homes since 2015,” the UN said.
