Beijing, Aug. 2 (Xinhua-ANI): US President Barack Obama Thursday met with his Yemeni counterpart Abdo Rabbu Mansour Hadi at the White House to discuss Yemen's political transition, counterterrorism partnership and the return of Yemeni detainees held at Guantanamo Bay.
A joint statement released after the meeting said the two leaders held talks on Yemen's efforts to implement the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Initiative, and Hadi spoke of the progress in restructuring the military and undertaking a national dialogue as well as making preparations for a new voter registry, constitutional referendum and national elections.
Hadi took office in February 2012 after the GCC initiative ended the rule of Ali Abdullah Saleh and 11 months of mass protests across the country. He had pledged to carry out reforms during his two-year transitional term, to launch a national dialogue with all political factions, and to combat al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).
"President Obama reiterated the United States' support for the stability, security, prosperity and unity of Yemen," the statement said.
The two presidents "reaffirmed their commitment to a strong and enduring counterterrorism and security partnership and agreed to cooperate closely to enable the return of Yemeni detainees at Guantanamo Bay who have been designated for transfer," the statement noted.
It said they discussed a range of efforts to counter the threat to both countries posed by AQAP, and affirmed "the importance of combating terrorism within the framework of the rule of law and of supporting Yemen's efforts to build capable, effective and professional security forces."
The Obama administration is helping the Yemeni troops fight the resurgent al-Qaida off-shoot, and has stepped up drone strikes since Hadi took office, with a view to uprooting the militants in the country's southern regions.
Obama thanked Hadi for the "strong cooperation" in counterterrorism offered by his government. "Because of some of the effective military reforms that President Hadi initiated when he came into office, what we've seen is al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP, moves back out of territories that it was controlling," he told reporters at the White House after his meeting with the Yemeni leader.
On the Guantanamo Bay detainees, Obama reaffirmed his commitment to closing the detention facility, and noted his decision to lift the moratorium on detainee transfers to Yemen, which was imposed following a foiled attempt to blow up a Detroit-bound passenger plane on Christmas Day in 2009 by AQAP.
"The two presidents agreed their governments would work together to facilitate the repatriation of Yemeni detainees who have been designated for transfer," said the joint statement.
"President Hadi affirmed his intention to establish an extremist rehabilitation program to address the problem of violent extremism within Yemen, which could also facilitate the transfer of Yemeni detainees held at Guantanamo," it added.
Out of the 166 detainees there, 56 are Yemenis already cleared for transfer. (Xinhua-ANI)
|
|
Comments:
