UAE on Upcoming Yemen Meeting in London

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABU DHABI 000035 SIPDIS FOR NEA/ARP ANDREW MACDONALD E.O. 12958: DECL: 2020/01/25 TAGS: PREL PGOV EAID YM AE SUBJECT: UAE on Upcoming Yemen Meeting in London REF: STATE 6940; ABU DHABI 6 CLASSIFIED BY: Richard Olson, Ambassador; REASON: 1.4(B),(D) ¶1. (C) On January 24, PolOff delivered ref A demarche to Ambassador Mohammed Sultan Al Suwaidi, Director of Arab Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Al Suwaidi stressed the UAE’s view that Yemen’s three security threats --- the Houthi rebels, Al Qaeda, and the southern secessionists --- must be addressed collectively. Al Suwaidi attended the four-party consultations in London January 19 and was well-versed on US and UK efforts to promote international and regional support for the ROYG. He plans to attend the January 27 meeting as part of a small Emirati delegation led by Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan. ¶2. (C) Al Suwaidi said Yemen’s neighbors want to see an end to the Houthi conflict but it was only one of Yemen’s three security problems. He suggested all three issues should be on the table in London because each posed a serious and equal threat to President Saleh’s government. Al Suwaidi pledged the UAEG’s continued public and private support for President Saleh but confidentially questioned his competence. Noting the UAE’s recent announcement of $650 million in financial assistance (ref B) Al Suwaidi expressed concerns about corruption within the ROYG and its capacity to effectively utilize international aid. ¶3. (C) Comment. Despite his own pessimistic view of the Saleh government, Al Suwaidi made clear the UAEG remains strongly supportive of US and UK efforts on Yemen. His criticism of the ROYG may reflect the frustration of working level MFA personnel but is unlikely to be repeated by the UAE Foreign Minister in London. OLSON