The crises in Yemen and Sudan are important issues for Foreign Minister Baerbock on her inaugural trip to the Gulf States of Saudi Arabia and Qatar. But there are other issues too.
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is in Saudi Arabia today to continue her talks on the situation in civil war-torn Yemen. In the port city of Jeddah on the Red Sea, the Green politician first wants to meet with the UN coordinator for Yemen, David Gressly. A meeting is then planned with the Yemeni Foreign Minister Ahmed bin Mubarak, who is in the city at the same time as Baerbock.
End of the Yemen war within reach?
Given the rapprochement between Saudi Arabia and Iran, the chances of an easing of the war in Yemen, where both countries support different sides, are better than they have been in years. Riyadh is looking for a way out of the costly conflict in which, according to UN estimates, at least 377,000 people lost their lives as a result of the direct and indirect consequences of the war. About 23 million people are dependent on some form of humanitarian aid. Saudi Arabia is fighting in Yemen against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels who overran the country in 2014 and control large parts of the north.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Germany was the second largest humanitarian donor to Yemen in 2022 with around 194.5 million euros. In February, the federal government announced a further 120 million euros for 2023.
A major problem for the implementation of humanitarian aid continues to be limited access to those in need. According to the federal government, humanitarian partners reported more than 3,300 documented access restrictions last year, with more than five million people being denied humanitarian aid. A rule enforced primarily by the Houthis, according to which Yemeni women are not allowed to travel without a male relative, poses a particular obstacle.
Workers’ rights talks planned in Qatar
The minister wants to travel on to Qatar around noon. In Doha, the capital of the desert state, a meeting with the local head of the project office of the International Labor Organization (ILO), Max Tunon, is planned. During the 2022 World Cup, Qatar was heavily criticized for the situation of around 2.6 million workers.
The government has launched reforms that aim to reduce employees’ previous dependency on their employers. For example, a minimum wage was introduced, as well as a legal limit on working hours and paid vacation. However, non-governmental organizations such as Amnesty International denounce the slow implementation.
Tomorrow, at the end of her three-day trip, Baerbock wants to meet Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Doha for political talks.
Source: Stern
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