Full transcript of President Al-Alimi’s Interview with Al-Arabiya TV

  Riyadh

His Excellency President Dr. Rashad Mohammed Al-Alimi, President of the Presidential Leadership Council, spoke in an exclusive interview with Al-ArabiyaTV, about latest developments in the local situation, the roots of Iran’s presence in Yemen, strategic relations with the member countries of the Coalition to Support legitimacy in Yemen, and the international stances towards the Houthi terrorist militias. The following is the full transcript of the interview.

The interviewer:

Dear viewers, welcome to our exclusive interview with His Excellency, Dr. Rashad Mohammed Al-Alimi, President of the Presidential Leadership Council.

Dr. Rashad, welcome. It is my pleasure to have you exclusively on Al-Arabiya TV, which is obviously your first interview after you became the President of the Presidential Leadership Council.

So Your Excellency, let's start talking about the most recent controversial issue, which is the truce in Yemen, its future, and outcomes nowadays.  At the beginning of October, the United Nations efforts failed to extend the truce after shuttling tours and talks that have dragged on for months. Why do you think the truce fall apart and was defeated in Yemen?

President Al- Alimi:

Thank you so much, dear Khaled. I am so glad to be interviewed today by Al-Arabiya, which is obviously my favorite TV channel, and to be interviewed especially by you, because I absolutely like your direct questions.

Well, as for the truce, as you know, when the Presidential Leadership Council was formed, the truce was still in force and was renewed by the legitimate government, however since 2nd October the terrorist Houthi militias have refused to extend this truce despite all the efforts made by both the Saudi-led Arab Coalition, the UN envoy, in addition to the Omani efforts that had been made along those lines. But unfortunately the militias have so far refused to renew the truce.

Obviously, the truce was fragile, and was based on three key elements: the first was the opening of Sana’a International Airport to our people in Sana’a, the second was Hodeidah port, and non-obstructing the entry of ships loaded with oil derivatives, the third was the opening of the roads in Taiz, that had been besieged by the militias for the past seven years.

The interviewer:

So these are the demands?

President Al- Alimi: These are the elements of the truce, the key elements that we along with the legitimate government have implemented, such as the opening of Sana'a airport, we were keen to open Sana'a airport and many attempts were made by the legitimate government years ago to open Sana'a airport, however the Houthi terrorist militias rejected all these offers, and came up with false excuses. So by opening Sana'a airport we hope to help our people in Sana'a and the neighboring Houthi- controlled areas.

They refused to implement the elements that concern them, they refused to open the roads in Taiz, so theyhave been besieging the roads to Taiz until this day. In addition during the truce period, many violations were committed on all fronts. Moreover we had hundreds of martyrs and wounded from the national army, the National Resistance forces and military formations on all fronts. However we in the legitimate government have been very patient and we tried to overlook such violations, hopping that this truce will last for a longer time, and then we will move on to a cease-fire and political consultations that will lead to peace and stability for all Yemeni people everywhere.

The interviewer:

During the rounds of negotiations that were held on extending the truce, did the Houthis express their rejection of such truce, maybe by escalation on the ground, at the negotiating tables, or it was all just stalling without clearly expressing their position on the truce?

President Al- Alimi:

First of all, the Houthis broke the truce, especially in terms of opening the roads in Taiz, which is an objective justification for not renewing the truce. So we can close Sana’a airport, and block and prevent the entry of ships loaded with oil derivatives to Hodeida port, and as we know the Houthis are making tens or even hundreds of billions of oil derivatives and the port of Hodeidah, that's about five billion Yemeni riyals for each fuel shipment. According to the Stockholm Agreement, all Hodeidah port's revenues should go for paying the salaries of civil employees in Houthi-controlled areas. However  when the Presidential Leadership Council was formed, we announced before parliament that the salaries of civil servants especially in Houthi-controlled areas will be one of the key issues to be addressed in our program, and we do not accept to leave our people in Houthi-controlled areas without salaries. You know that the Houthis have looted more than 45 billion riyals from the central bank branch in Hodeidah, which was according to the Stockholm Agreement was allocated for paying the salaries of government employees in Houthi-controlled areas. The Security Council had done nothing, they didn't even condemn that looted money by the Houthis from the central bank branch in Hodeidah which was transferred to fuel the Houthis’ military operations.  

The interviewer:

Where is the position of the international mediators on these negotiations? I mean they know that you are abiding by the terms of the truce whereas the second party has demonstrated a lack of commitment and escalation, for example, in terms of lifting the siege of Taiz and the opening of roads? What is their position?

President Al- Alimi:

Actually, the international position is putting pressure on the legitimate government, and on the coalition leadership, so in their speech they keep saying you are a state, you are an institution, you have obligations towards your Yemeni society and the international community. These are mere militias, that's why when we put pressure on you, we do this because you are an institution that respects itself, its laws, its own constitution and its people. But these militias pay attention to nothing at all, obviously, such justifications are consistently made. On the other hand there were condemnations made, whether by the UN envoy who condemned the militias' refusal to renew the truce, and the US envoy who has also condemned such acts, but unfortunately that isn't enough.

Statements and condemnations are not enough. We should take certain measures to force these militias to come to the negotiating table to end the war and achieve peace and stability for all Yemeni people. This is what the international community, the UN envoy and the US envoy, should do instead of only condemnations.

The interviewer:

So, you haven't felt that the Houthis are being pressured by the UN envoy and even the US envoy in this regard?

President Al- Alimi:

Well, I think they are putting a kind of pressure, but they're all just condemnations. But what we really need is to put those condemnations into actions, and that's what we have been trying to convey to the international community, that words can never work with such militias.

The interviewer:

So what specifically do you demand of the international community in your speeches?

President Al- Alimi:

We call on the international community to designate this terrorist group as a terrorist organization. Because this terrorist group is part of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, and a part of Hezbollah, which have been already designated as terrorist organizations. So why not designate this group as the same!

The previous US administration has already taken a step to designate this group as a terrorist organization, but unfortunately the new administration came and lift this designation, which considered as a reward for the Houthis. So, we call on the international community not to offer incentives to the terrorist militia because they might go too far. The more incentives offered to the militias by the international or regional community, the more they will prevailed the Iranian interests over the Yemeni people’s interest. The more this terrorist militia will persist with its terrorist acts and violence against Yemeni people, against women, children, and against private and public property.

All the violations committed by the militias do not differ from the ones committed by ISIS and Al-Qaeda. So, when you compare the criminal acts committed by these terrorist militias with the ones committed by Al-Qaeda and ISIS, you will find there is no significance difference between the two. Moreover, there is a kind of coordination between them and Al-Qaeda and ISIS, which has been demonstrated by practice. We had those detained in terrorist-related cases, including the USS Cole bombing, they were released by the terrorist Houthi militia, and supplied with weapons, equipment, and money, and then released to legitimate government – controlled areas to carry out terrorist actions. Where there were clashes between these militias  and counter-terrorism units, in which about eight of these militias were killed in Al-Dhalea, and five were martyred, including the CTS commander in Al-Dhalea.

This is only an example of the coordination between the Houthis, Al Qaeda and ISIS. We have already informed the international community and all security agencies. Our intelligence agencies have already fully informed them of all of this.

The interviewer:

So you are saying that lack of real international pressure today on the Houthi militia has led to the continuation of such terrorist acts and the failure of this truce, its escalation in more than one region and the continued siege on Taiz and other Yemeni regions. However some people accuse the legitimate government in Yemen and the Council of being a part of the problem, since they have also led to the continuation of Houthi's terrorist acts on the ground. In other words, why are you, on your part, abide by all the terms of the truce, whereas they fail to abide by such terms and fail to lift the siege as a key term for the continuation of the truce?

President Al- Alimi:

You're absolutely right, I agree with you. Many people blame us even in Houthi- controlled areas. A lot of people blame the legitimate government and the Council for making all of these concessions while the terrorist militias haven't made any. They are actually right, however we have overlooked this and taken this step to alleviate the suffering of our Yemeni people.

Yemeni people suffer acute human crisis, especially in Houthi-controlled areas. So, we agreed to continue the truce in light of the Houthis' intransigence. First for our people's interest, second to expose the claims promoted by the Houthis to the international community, since they were claiming that they are an oppressed group and this is unfair war against them. As you can see nowadays the war has stopped only by one side but not by the militias who have continued and promise to continue with that war, which led to expose them to the Yemeni people first and then exposes them to the international community, that they are not a peace project. We always keep telling the international community that we in the leadership council, in the government, and in the coalition are advocates of peace, but we have no peace partner from the other side of the Houthis.

The interviewer:

How long are you going to act like this? Do you think there is need for exposing these militias by the international community nowadays? Everything is already clear, escalation everywhere by the Houthis, and many attempts were made to break or eliminate the truce. There is still a kind of refusal for such a truce in addition to the continued threat to maritime navigation. So Yemeni citizens keep wondering how much longer do we still have to wait, what do you think?

President Al- Alimi:

Well, such question is raised and further discussed in the Presidential Leadership Council and in the government. In fact, we believe that when the National Defense Council had its meeting and took the decision to response to this terrorist escalation made by the Houthis when targeting oil facilities, targeting international maritime, in addition to the continuing military offensives on all fronts, that had led to holding the National Defense Council meeting.

For those who don't have an idea what the National Defense Council is all about. Yemen's National Defense Council is made up of the president, members of the Presidential Leadership Council, Speaker of the Parliament, Prime Minister, Minister of the Defense, Minister of the Interior, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Information, Minister of Finance, Chief of the General Staff, and adviser to the Presidency for Military Affairs.

We have had a meeting in the council, and we made the decision to designate the militia as a terrorist group. This decision was taken by the National Defense Council, then the Presidential Leadership Council instructed the government to take all measures to implement this designation into economic and administrative actions.

There are dozens of terrorist militias- affiliated companies that smuggle Iranian oil products to the port of Hodeidah. There are dozens or hundreds of money exchange agencies that work with the Houthi terrorist militia. There are many banks that deal with these companies and the terrorist Houthi militia leaders.

The government had taken a range of measures, however al-Houthi has already step forward to tell the international community that such measures will force them to declare war. However, the war hasn't ended yet, moreover al-Houthi rejects peace and the truce. So there is nothing new about their arguments.

We could have stopped Sana'a airport, stopped flights, but we continued on humanitarian grounds. We worked on facilitating the entry of oil derivatives ships to the port of Hodeidah, but not for terrorist Houthi leaders- affiliated companies that smuggled Iranian oil. We have highly considered the humanitarian aspects of our people in Houthi- controlled areas, at the same time, we have taken such measures and we are continuing to take them, and this blacklist will be updated soon.

The interviewer:

Your Excellency, to conclude the discussion of this topic, especially the international position, there is a common position among the Security Council on the Yemeni crisis, but so far hasn't been materialize on the ground when dealing with these terrorist militias. So, let me ask you, in your opinion, why do you think this hasn't been materialize on the ground, are there difficulties that stand in the face of a strong firm international action against the Houthi militia at this time? 

President Al- Alimi:

First of all dear brother, all international positions are positions of countries of interest, and those interests are always reflected on those countries’ positions. Obviously, we cannot put the entire international community in one basket, because some countries might be more influential than others on the world scene.

We believe that countries with great influence whose position can actually put more pressure on the Houthi militia might reconsider their own strategic interests in the region that are related to the conflict in the region, to the Iranian nuclear issue, and the relationship with Iran. So many interrelated issues, so if you still remember my first visit to a foreign country outside the region, it was to Germany, because we believe that the German position is an important one within the European Union, and the Houthis were betting big on the German positions. Because their so-called soft elements had a presence in Europe, America and in such countries, however the European position has totally changed nowadays.

The interviewer:

Absolutely true, and the latest statement proves that. I mean the EU's statement?

President Al- Alimi:

We welcome the latest European statement, obviously in terms of Al-Houthi.

The interviewer:

Maybe because it included a firmer and clearer position against the Houthis.

President Al- Alimi:

Exactly, however this position is more related to the situation in Ukraine, and Iran's role in Ukraine, all we care about is the situation in Yemen, yet still the statement had been clearly expressed, it was like the first clear transparent condemnation made by the European Union against the terrorist Houthi group. However we have made it clear when we welcomed that statement. But this is not enough, we call on the international community to designate the Houthis as a terrorist group.

The interviewer:

US position could be a game changer in this regard. Have you seen any changes in the American position nowadays?

President Al- Alimi:

We believe there is no clear change in US position so far, except for the condemnations made by their ambassador to Yemen and the briefing that we heard before Congress, which we believe is an exposure of the Iranian project that is being implemented by the terrorist Houthi militias in Yemen and in the region.

The interviewer:

Dear viewers welcome to the second part of this special interview with the President of the Presidential Leadership Council, Dr. Rashad Mohammed Al-Alimi, welcome, Dr. Rashad. So doctor, since you have held many positions in Yemeni politics and in political leadership in Yemen and you've lived through many changes and wars against the Houthi militia throughout the history of Yemen, let me ask you about the US position on the relationship between the Houthi militia and Iran. To what extent does the United States, with all its authorities, including the White House, the Pentagon, foreign affairs, and the Congress, understand such relationship between the Houthi militia and Iran?

President Al- Alimi:

Dear brother, during the wars of the government against the Houthi rebels, whom we used to call rebels at that time. First of all brother Khaled, everyone should know the beginning of these militias. Some think that these militias began the post-2000 period, which is not true.

The emergence of Iranian cells in Yemen coincided with the emergence of Hezbollah in Lebanon. That year the militia, led by Al-Houthi and Salah Faletah, father of the Houthis chief negotiator, had attacked civilian and military targets in Sanaa, including throwing bombs at Belqis Cinema which resulted in killing the cinema's security guard at that time, in addition to other terrorist acts. They were caught and imprisoned, some of them fled to Iran at that time, then came back through mediation with the government in 1986.

So, what you should know is the emergence of Iranian cells in Yemen coincided with the emergence of Hezbollah in Lebanon. It should be evident to everybody that the Iranian project was conceived by an early strategic plan and not in 2000 or 2004. This means Iranian interference in Yemen started immediately after exiled Ayatollah Khomeini’s 1979 return to Tehran and the beginning of the strategic project for Iranian expansion in the region.

Regarding the Iranian relationship, during the wars of the government against Houthi rebels in Saada, we tried to convince the international community, and in the forefront the United States, that there is unlimited Iranian support for this group. So whenever there is a U.S. delegation to Sana'a, we hand over files of evidence.

I will tell you a story of General Mattis, who served as the commander of U.S. Marine Forces at U.S. Central Command in 2010. He came to Sana’a, so I met him, and we had a lunch at the Army Officers' Club. I gave him a file and told him this file proves Iran's support for this terrorist group, and this is the No. 20 file handed over to the US government on Iran's relationship and support for the Hothi rebels in Saada because they always keep saying there is insufficient evidence.

I told him how about giving you the No. 20 file. He responded, " Don't even bother." I said, why? He answered because even if we are convinced in the Pentagon and the CIA that this is an Iranian-backed group, who can convince the White House? That was back in 2010, Mattis became Defense Minister under Trump Administration.

This is only to illustrate the political interests that determine states positions on such group.

The interviewer:

The Defense Council decided to designate the Houthis as a terrorist group, as an advanced measure following the failure of the truce. Many analysts and observers of the situation might be wondering why such decision has only been made by the Defense Council and not by the Presidency Leadership Council. What does that tell us?

President Al- Alimi:

I think such question would be raised due to the lack of understanding of the structure of the Yemen's National Defence Council. The National Defense Council already includes all State institutions, the presidency represented by chairperson and members of the Council, the speaker of the Parliament, Prime Minister, the Speaker of the Shura Council, Minister of the Defense and security, civilian defense ministers and Adviser to the Presidency for Military Affairs. Consequently this Council is the highest authority because it includes the presidency, the Parliament, the government, and the Shura Council. So, when the decision was issued, it was the decision of all State institutions, in other words, the decision was more powerful and influential when made by the National Defense Council, than by the Presidential Leadership Council because it represents all state authority.

The interviewer:

Do any international or maybe third parties have protective order about or supported such decision? I mean, how did the US react after such designation?

President Al- Alimi:

I believe that's a great question. We've never been criticized directly by any of our Western countries' accredited ambassadors. They are only concerned about whether such designation will negatively impact humanitarian, relief aids, the role of international organizations that will deal with people in Houthi –controlled areas, and the national private sector. We can reassure all our people that this designation will only include Houthi leaders, Houthi leaders – affiliated institutions, in addition to institutions, entities and individuals who were already blacklisted by the Coalition. By the way the Coalition has blacklisted many individuals and entities, but unfortunately those elements weren't blacklisted by the government, so when you ask the international community to designate Houthi militias as a terrorist group, I think you should start by yourself and then ask others to do so. That's why we can't say there was a tacit approval when we made that decision, however we have never been criticized by the international community for making such decision.

The interviewer:

Let's move to a heated issue, and as you know the Yemeni crisis has many heated issues, including the Presidential Leadership Council. I mean it has been more than eight months since the announcement of the formation of a Presidential Leadership Council in Yemen and I think this is long enough to assess the work and performance of the Council in many political, economic, and military aspects. As an observer let me tell you what Yemeni citizens whether in Yemen or abroad say about the situation. Some think that this council is operating inefficiently. While others believe there is a deadly power vacuum. So, neither the council has returned to the country to address such issues, nor the state institutions have been developed to work effectively on the ground. Members of the Presidential Leadership Council were even unable to hold their meetings, neither in Yemen nor abroad. I'm just trying to communicate what they say, and there is even more. Neither the financial situation nor the daily life of the Yemeni citizen has improved. Everyone thinks that the Council is an obvious recipe for disputes and the ending maybe more than harmony and unity as one of the objectives of announcing this council. Some have even described it as a time bomb' ready to explode any time. What does the President of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council have to say about all of this?

President Al- Alimi:

First of all, dear brother, I want to be very clear about something. You know that all State institutions have collapsed, the entire infrastructure has collapsed and been destroyed. Can you believe it, the office of the Presidential Leadership Council in Aden has four rented rooms from Al-Tilal Sports Club in Aden near Masheq! So We do not even have an office to work from.

The interviewer:

So, set up an office what's the problem in doing so?

President Al- Alimi:

No’ I'm just pointing out the difficulties here. I am just reflecting generally on the situation. So, the assessment can be made within eight months, however under exceptional circumstances, eight months for making the assessment are going to be unfair. 

But I can confirm four key points, firstly regarding the unity of the Council. Obviously, we all realize that the Iranian project represented by the Houthi terrorist group in Sana'a considered the re-formation of this Council with such elements that have military dimensions a new Decisive Storm. Therefore, they used their media boosters at home and abroad, in Iran, Hezbollah and so on.

They have sizable media holdings that were used to dismantle the Presidential Leadership Council. That should be pretty clear to anyone listening. So, media had a great role, but unfortunately a lot of media professionals just went with the flow, maybe consciously or maybe due to lack of knowledge of what is going on around them.

But I would like to point out two things. First, the Presidential Leadership Council has been committed to a number of key issues. The council was committed to return to the country and continue to operate in Aden. So, we're back to Aden and continued to operate there, and the government continues to function as well.

The interviewer:

Since August 7, the council hasn't held any meeting in Aden? 

President Al- Alimi:

No, I am not talking about the government. The government is already there. We went back to Aden and stayed there for months and held back-to-back meetings there, we are committed to paying salaries to this day. However, it should be clear to everyone starting from next month, we will be facing a real problem, due to a halt in oil exports caused by the Houthi attacks that targeted the infrastructure, and fuel pumps, which will cost more than fifty million dollars to fix. In addition to the time it will take to be fixed which is about five to six months.

We are committed to rebuilding institutions, and we have already started with the Judicial Council, prosecution institutions, and courts. So, nowadays, courts, prosecution, and judicial institutions are fully functioning in all liberated areas.

Nowadays, the council meets regularly, and we are having a virtual meeting via zoom this week. So council members don’t need to be in Aden at all, because they already have ‏their tasks in the field that are very important for them, especially those in charge of the fronts.

The interviewer:

But don’t you think this will send a message of reassurance to Yemeni citizens when the Presidency Council is present in the interim capital, Aden, because it reflects unity and harmony which in turn will significantly affect Yemeni citizen?

President Al- Alimi:

I agree with you, but even the announcement of the transfer of power includes a provision for virtual meetings, it also stipulates that it is possible to meet directly or indirectly, which was stated in the declaration, so sometimes we address our issues through online communication in which many decisions are made. Moreover we have our own agenda that is distributed by the secretary.

The interviewer:

So, what is the truth behind the differences? Some people say that the Council's left Aden due to differences between the Transitional Council and the legitimate government. I mean, some differences were explained in practice by the Transitional Council's refusal even to reach out Rashad Al-Alimi. You think some people have widely circulated such claims?

President Al- Alimi:

Absolutely true some people have widely circulated such claims, and they are mainly anti- media outlets.

The interviewer:

So, this is all not true?

President Al- Alimi:

This is absolutely not true, I came back to Aden, so you see after circulating those claims, rumors began floating around in anti- council websites and media outlets, that Rashad Al-Alimi is not allowed to return to Aden and that Aidarous Al-Zubaidi is detained in UAE, which is absolutely not true. I came back to Aden and stayed there for a week and then I went to the Arab-China summit, and now I am going back to Aden. I’m in touch on a daily basis with brother Aidarous, and he is coming to Riyadh and then will fly together to Aden

The interviewer:

When is he going to be in Riyadh?

President Al- Alimi:

He will come to Riyadh a day or two before I fly to Aden, and then we’ll fly together to Aden.

The interviewer:

Are you going to discuss or address any issues before flying to Aden?

President Al- Alimi:

We have our own agenda prepared by the secretariat, some issues are referred by the office and the members of the council put forward proposals that are submitted to the secretary to prepare the agenda. Then we send those agenda to the members of the council and hold regular meetings within the agenda in which many decisions are made.

The interviewer:

You’ve mentioned there is a sort of improvement in terms of the judiciary within the Council, however some people suggest that the number one important measure that should be taken against the Houthi militia, is reintegrating military formations. I mean you’ve already formed a committee. What has been accomplished by this committee so far? What are its outcomes?

President Al- Alimi:

First of all, this committee is one of the best committees that work with the Presidential Leadership Council, because it includes elite military and security leaders of all military formations, this is first. Second, it is chaired by Major General Haitham Qassem Taher, who was the former Minister of Defense after the Yemeni Unity and until the 1994 war.  The military council’s plan was completed and submitted and then approved by the Presidential Leadership Council.

The chairman of the committee went to Riyadh along with committee members, to meet with the brothers in the joint operations, and we took some of their recommendations and remarks on this issue into consideration , they have already started implementing this plan, by making field visits to all military formations in all regions, and all zones , and as I speak they’ve been working continuously and moving from one region to another, from one zone to another, and from one leading military formation to another.

The interviewer:

Let’s talk pragmatically, what military formations have actually incorporated nowadays, I mean for instance the Transitional Council and such military formations?

President Al- Alimi:

We have seven military regions that were originally affiliated with the Ministry of Defense. We have the Transitional Council, The Southern Giants Brigades (Al-Amaliqa), the Yemeni Republican Guard, and Mocha and Tihamah Resistance, in addition to the military zone of Saada. So, the committee represents all these military formations without exception, therefore field visits will include all these military formations.  The Presidential Leadership Council will be informed of the outcomes of those field visits, in addition to some recommendations in order to implement the tasks listed in the announcement of the transfer of power.

The interviewer:

What does the Transitional Council think of such integration, is it for or against?

President Al- Alimi:

Well, we need to be clear about this, we have three phases, the first one includes the establishment of a joint operations room, and we have already started establishing one in Aden. The second phase includes unifying the theater of military operations which includes all military units and formations. So that all military fronts will receive their instructions from that room, I mean one operation room. The third phase includes integration which comes at a later stage.

The interviewer:

When? Have you set a specific date or time to achieve that objective or result?

President Al- Alimi:

Well, you see the integration process takes too long, and as you know we are in the battle now. So, we cannot take the military forces from the theater of operations, redistribute them, and then integrate them because this could break the balance of the operation. So this is left to the Security and Military Committee to decide what to do.

The interviewer:

What about corruption, your Excellency, previous reports have revealed corruption in all formations of the military sector. I mean fake names, repeated names for tens of thousands of times. How far did you go in getting that issue resolved?

President Al- Alimi:

This is one of the tasks of the Military and Security Committee. The Military and Security Committee has now asked for data from the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of the Interior, and from military formations. These data then will be examined by this committee and will be

The interviewer-interrupting:

But there are already big names, how are you going to hold them accountable?

President Al- Alimi:

Hold them accountable for what?

The interviewer:

Hold them accountable for corruption, Your Excellency !

President Al- Alimi:

Absolutely, measures will be taken against them. We will never accept any kind of corruption.  But let's first...

 

The interviewer-Interrupting:

Whoever he is? I mean you will hold any person involved accountable, whoever this person is, if he was found guilty, do you promise to do so?

President Al- Alimi:

Well, I would prefer to leave this to the Military and Security Committee to do their job, and then based on the recommendations submitted to the Presidential Leadership Council, the Council will make the appropriate decisions according to those recommendations.

The interviewer:

Recently, the silent dispute between members of the Council, has surfaced and began to expose corruption in more than one party, ‏ mutual recriminations between members of the Council, in addition to the other accusations against the Transitional Council.  Have you ever discussed or addressed this issue?

President Al- Alimi:

First of all, dear brother, there are no indictments against any member of the Presidential Leadership Council. No indictments of this kind have ever been issued against any council member, and as the chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council, I can bet on that and I’m responsible for what I said.

We are a multi – party system, Mr. Khaled. We have political elements and parties, we have civil society organizations, and we have media professionals, everyone expresses his own opinion, so we can’t silence these voices. We let them speak, but I can reassure you that such disputes are not within the council.

The interviewer:

How do you evaluate the relationship between the Council and the Saudi-led Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen? How would you describe the Saudi Yemeni, Yemeni Emirati and other relations?

President Al- Alimi:

Regarding our relationship with the Saudi-led Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen, dear brother, I believe, First, I want to draw attention to something, we in the Presidential Leadership Council and the government believe and realize that our strategic relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as the leader of this coalition is not an emotional relationship, rather it is a historic and strategic relationship for Yemeni people’s interests.

As you know we have about 1,400 km of land borders with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We have thousands of villages on the Yemeni-Saudi borders, some of them are on the Yemeni side while others are on the Saudi side. So sometimes you find the sheikh of the tribe in Saudi Arabia other times you’ll find him in Yemen.

We have more than 2 million Yemenis living in Saudi Arabia, and this is just the official number, maybe there are more than 25 percent are not listed. Moreover, more than 4 billion dollars of money are transferred from Yemenis in Saudi to their families in Yemen in addition to the development aid that  are provided by the Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen (SDRPY) -or by  King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KS Relief) or  through direct support, oil derivatives, services. Now we have Aden Hospital, which will be run by a Saudi company, and will provide medical services for free, out -patient clinics have started to open the day before yesterday, and I have been told there are hundreds of people standing in line at the hospital door today because it provides free treatment, I mean more than half a million Yemeni citizens will benefit from such medical services. This is regarding services improvement in Aden. Moreover, the UAE will provide 120 megawatts of solar power in Bir Ahmed. Which will be put into operation on June 1st.

I am referring hereto the strategic relationship between the KSA and Yemen. It is a relationship based on Yemeni people's interest, however the Houthis have put Iran’s interest over Yemeni people interests , but I think Yemeni people are fully aware of such issue and the revolution of September 26, 1962, in which Republican regime was established in Yemen, proves it, for example on the last 26th Sep revolution anniversary, Yemenis celebrated in the streets of Sana'a despite Houthi oppression, which  sends a powerful message to the Iranian- backed militias. Furthermore, When the Saudi national team won the match with Argentina, Yemenis celebrated in Sana'a more than in any other Yemeni region. Why do you think is that?  It is an outright rejection of the Houthis because Houthis have supported Iran and chanted slogans in the streets of Sana'a in support of the Iranian national team. On the other hand, Yemenis have celebrated the win of the Saudi national team. Which I believe is a kind of indirect rejection of the Iranian presence in Sana'a.

The interviewer:

Your Excellency, so many issues that are worthy of discussion in Yemen, however I will give you the floor in less than a minute or two to send a message. I may have missed asking some important questions, but I would like you to send a message to Yemeni citizens in Hothi- controlled areas in Sana'a, in the besieged city of Taiz, in areas of conflict and confrontation lines, for example Marib, and southern areas are living in a chaotic situation., maybe Hadramout, Socotra, Al-Mahra, and other southern areas?

President Al- Alimi:

So let's start first with the fighters, a salute to all the heroic fighters of the national army including the resistance and all the different military formations that are fighting valiantly the terrorist Houthi militia on all fronts. We assure them that we will be by their side, we will fully support their resilience, and we will stand with them, and this Iranian-backed coup will eventually be defeated whether peacefully or violently, and Yemeni people will never accept this Iranian presence in his own country.

My second message is to our brothers in Sana'a and in all terrorist Houthi militias- controlled areas. I assure them that we are by their side and that all the concessions we made were not for the sake of terrorist Houthi militia, but they were for their sake because they're our family and we'll stand by them and tell them we're the first people to demand salaries payment. So if they can go back to my speech before the parliament in Aden, they'll see that salary payment was within our demands, and we have actually began to consider paying salaries away from the Houthi militia, if we could, and we were able to pay salaries, we have no problems with salaries, but the Hothi is one who  has a problem with salaries due issuing a Code of Conduct that states whoever does not support the terrorist militias will not receive salaries. So he wants the salaries of his militias.

I just want to tell our people in Taiz, your steadfastness is legendary and great, and that legendary steadfastness that you've demonstrated to withstand over in the face of the Iranian project will always be a great example.

I would like to assure our brothers in southern governorates, that we are supporting you and we are standing with you today. We give priority to improving services in these governorates. We give priority to improving services and building institutions in Aden, so that Aden will be an example of the powerful modern state.

The interviewer-Interrupting:

To the ones responsible for the chaotic situation in southern governorates? What does the chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council have to say?

President Al- Alimi:

I just want to say something. The chaotic situation in southern governorates is not in anyone's interest, I believe Houthis and the Iranian project are the source of instability in southern governorates because they want to bring down the Presidency Council and to tell the citizens that we militias are a better choice for you even better than the Presidential Leadership Council or the legitimate government.

The interviewer:

Your Excellency, Yemeni diplomacy has been widely criticized for not moving in their areas and countries of operation and for not mobilizing the support for the Council against the Houthis. Was it the corruption that has spread within such diplomatic missions by appointing hundreds of relatives of high- ranking officials who are not members of the diplomatic missions? Was that the reason, and how are you going to address such issue?

President Al- Alimi:

Thank you for bringing that up dear brother, First of all, regarding Yemeni diplomacy, as you know the Iranian militia coup took control of state institutions in Sana’a, and the government was formed in exile, so the diplomatic missions abroad are currently witnessing a state of polarization between loyalty to the legitimate government in exile and loyalty to the militias in Sana’a.

Here the diplomatic apparatus has been completely destroyed. So even when we were trying to sneak some qualified diplomats from Sana’a to appoint them for diplomatic missions, we faced many difficulties and they and their families were threatened by militias in addition to property seizure. A lot of people had their property seized due to working with the legitimate government, so loyalty to legitimacy and competence were the two main points of focus, the focus was mainly on loyalty to legitimacy, although there was already a kind corruption in this aspect, since many elements who had nothing to do with the diplomatic apparatus at all were appointed. However, diplomacy has been working efficiently abroad, it is enough that it has retained its Yemeni identity. So, the Yemeni state is still standing firm, embassies are still working, Passports are still being issued, so Yemeni citizens can travel freely using their passport from one country to another.

We in the Presidential Leadership Council, have started a ‏repositioning process, and we’ve directed the government to such repositioning. We have had about 376 diplomats abroad who were reduced to 326 over the last year to date. Moreover, we have about 121 attachés that were reduced to 91 within one year. The government is currently discussing a report on attachés that can be reduced to 10 or 15 attachés abroad. In addition, lists of the names whether of members of the diplomatic corps or not will be checked again. First, we will begin with repositioning to find out the elements who are not members of the diplomatic corps yet were appointed and refer them to the civil service. The elements who are already members of the diplomatic corps to be rehabilitate and arranged and repositioned. Furthermore, we’ll have fewer embassies. So instead of having ten or 15 embassies in Europe, three or four embassies will be enough, I mean there is a kind of repositioning.

The interviewer:

Ok, so what about those involved in corruption, what measures are going to be taken against them? Those who have been proven involved in corruption, what measures are going to be taken against them?

President Al- Alimi:

Well dear brother, we first address the problem, and then after addressing the problem, we identify the causes of the problem, then if we believe there are people worthy of being hold accountable, they will be held accountable.

The interviewer:

Within the framework of addressing corruption, you've directed to address the situation in the Ministry of Higher Education in terms of scholarship students. How far did you get in addressing that issue?

President Al- Alimi:

Based on the directives, a committee has now been formed including the government, the judiciary, and Central Organization for Control and Auditing, to list down all scholarship students and then cancel the names of unworthy students and keep the worthy ones.

In addition, the government has made extraordinary efforts over the past years to lower the tuition fees from $12 million per year to $7 million from 2019 to date.

Nowadays, we're trying to devote every effort to provide more internal scholarships in Yemeni universities because this amount of money can cover the tuition fees of tens of thousands of our outstanding students to study in Yemen and in Yemeni universities.

The interviewer:

Dr. Rashad Al-Alimi,President of the Presidential Leadership Council, thank you so much for being here with us today in this exclusive interview.

President Al- Alimi:

Thank you, dear Khaled, and thank you to Al-Arabiya staff, and I promise we will meet soon in upcoming interviews.