• King Salman’s $200 million grant for Yemen praised
• Crown Prince briefs Cabinet on successful Kuwait visit
• UNHRC’s failure in adopting unified Yemen resolution deplored

Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — The Council of Ministers on Tuesday commended Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman for his directive to provide a grant of $200 million to the Central Bank of Yemen to boost its financial position to help alleviate the suffering of the Yemeni people.

King Salman chaired the weekly session of the Cabinet at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh.

In a statement to the Saudi Press Agency following the session, Minister of Media Awwad Al-Awwad said that the new grant is in addition to the Kingdom’s previous deposits in the Yemeni Central Bank amounting to $3 billion in its bid to reduce the economic burden on the people of Yemen.

The Cabinet noted that the move confirms the Kingdom’s continuous approach to stand with the Yemeni people and support its government to restore the country’s security and stability as well as to enable it to carry out its duties for the benefit of its citizens.

Upon the directive of the King, Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense, briefed the Cabinet on the outcome of his recent official visit to Kuwait during which he discussed with the Kuwaiti leadership the way to further strengthen bilateral ties and serve their interests in all fields.

Al-Awwad said the Cabinet discussed the joint statement in which Saudi Arabia, Yemen, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt emphasized the failure of the UN Human Rights Council in adopting a unified draft resolution on the situation in Yemen.

The statement attributed this to the non-cooperation of some countries with the international resolutions concerned directly with the human rights situation.

The Cabinet discussed the Kingdom’s assertion before the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly of its firm position and principles in its foreign policy toward a number of issues in the Middle East region, which include efforts for permanent peaceful resolutions through mediation, emphasis on the principle of respect for national sovereignty and non-interference in the internal affairs of countries, and its rejection of interfering in its internal affairs or imposing any dictates from any country.

The Cabinet praised the public financial strategy and its contribution to reducing deficit rates, supporting the public finance sustainability and economic growth over the medium term, the successful implementation of several initiatives to develop non-oil revenues, improving spending efficiency and mechanisms for supporting beneficiaries.

The Cabinet also praised the contents of the Preliminary-Budget Statement for the fiscal year 2019.

The Cabinet also discussed the statement made by the Kingdom before the meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in the United Nations in New York.

It emphasized the importance of the Palestinian cause for Islamic and Arab nations, the Arab and Islamic identity of Jerusalem (Al-Quds) and the right of the State of Palestine to sovereignty over all Palestinian land occupied in 1967 including Jerusalem (Al-Quds), adherence to peace as a strategic solution, resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative.