Yemen & Saudi Arabia: END OF THE RAINBOW? [Archives:1999/08/Front Page]

End-game is fast approaching for Yemen and Saudi Arabia. At least that is what Mr. Abdul-Qader Ba-Jammal, Acting Prime Minister, said last week. In spite of 6 years of intensive bargaining and negotiation, the 2 countries have failed to conclude a border agreement.
Yemeni politicians constantly say that they have conceded on one issue after another. They accuse Saudi Arabia of attempting to undermine the Sanaa regime and of not really being interested in a border agreement. Saudi officials respond by saying that the Sanaa regime is using Saudi Arabia as a convenient excuse for its internal difficulties. They also add that Yemenis mix too many issues with the border problem, further complicating the talks.
Three weeks ago, a joint delegation visited the Jabal Thar and Ras Al-Mu’waj sites. “There is a small strip of land – some four to five kilometers long, separating the two sides,” explained Sheikh Selah Al-A’ajam, who is part of the group that visited the two sites. However, it is not just the difference over the land that separates Yemen and Saudi.
Mr. Ba-Jammal carried on February 16th, a letter from President Ali Abdullah Saleh to HH Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz.
“We feel we have bridged the gap. There is a strong feeling in both sides that we really need to finalize this matter quite soon and move on to a more meaningful bilateral cooperation and understanding,” Ba-Jammal said.
However, the two sides have been close to a final agreement many times before, but failed to take the last few steps. It looks like a change in the leaderships in either country has to happen in order to conclude an agreement.

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