Al-Zubaidi from London: Talks about the future of Yemen must be reformulated in accordance with the new reality
English - Saturday 24 June 2023 الساعة 06:18 pm
Aden, NewsYemen, exclusive:
The head of the Southern Transitional Council and a member of the Presidential Leadership Council, Aidaroos Al-Zubaidi, said: The ongoing talks about the future of Yemen must be reformulated according to the new reality created by the war.
Al-Zubaidi, who is currently visiting London, added in an interview with the British Guardian newspaper that the issue of an independent southern state should be placed at the forefront of discussions about the country's future.
On Friday, the British newspaper quoted Al-Zubaidi as saying that the West must be convinced that this is the new reality, and that the presence of a southern country led by the Transitional Council can open prospects for an intractable peace in Yemen, indicating that the peace process has stalled and that it was based on old assumptions about the ability to change a unified state. Now, any talks must take into account the participation of southerners and discuss the southern issue from its inception.
Al-Zubaidi warned that the Houthi militia, Iran's arm in Yemen, is strengthening its ranks and could attack the south at any time, and that the Transitional Council is the most organized and ready force to fight it.
The head of the Transitional Council sent messages of reassurance to the West that the sea lanes, ports and oil fields in the strategic south of Yemen will be safe under a state led by the Transitional Council, saying: "We will apply all the rules of the United Nations and international law." He warned that the alternative is for the Iranian-backed Houthis to take control of the Bab al-Mandab Strait and threaten international trade operations.
He also pledged to hold a UN-supervised referendum before the south becomes independent: "We are bound by all international laws and UN conventions for referenda. We can prepare voting lists for this now." He added that he was ready to cooperate with any international criminal court to investigate war crimes.
Al-Zubaidi talked about the southern state that preceded the 1990 unity, of which he was a part, saying: "That state had its advantages and disadvantages, but you never found anyone lacking basic needs, and the state respected human rights." He continued, "We used to be classified as extremist socialists, but we are open civilians. We are moderate patriots - neither Islamists nor secularists - we are in the middle, and we do not embrace any religious political movement."
He expressed his deep dissatisfaction that the government does not adequately reflect the strength of the Southern Transitional Council, describing it as a sluggish body. He said, "The time has come for change in the government because it is powerless and unable to provide the required basic services," pointing out that it is a mistake that there are no women in the government.
Al-Zubaidi had said in previous statements that the people in the north should not be left a prey to the Houthi militia, and that the cohesion of the Presidential Leadership Council must be preserved to face the challenges of the current stage, which he described as sensitive.
