Salman holds talks with UK foreign secretary
Saudi King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz yesterday received British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt in Riyadh. The meeting reviewed relations and cooperation between the two countries and the latest regional developments, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
Hunt has embarked on a two-leg tour of the Gulf that is taking him to Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
In Saudi Arabia, Hunt was scheduled to also meet Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman and Foreign Minister Adel Al Jubeir and would press for an end to the bloodshed in Yemen, the UK Foreign Office said. Hunt will also hold talks with Yemen’s Vice-President Ali Mohsen and Foreign Minister Khalid Al Yamani.
According to the Foreign Office statement, Hunt is seeking to build support among international, and particularly regional partners, for new action in the United Nations Security Council to bolster the UN-led peace process, following his meeting with UN Special Envoy for Yemen, Martin Griffiths last month.
Hunt will be the first UK minister to visit Saudi Arabia since the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi last month. Hunt had said earlier that the only solution to the war in Yemen was a political decision to set aside arms. Hunt’s visit to Saudi Arabia follows meetings held separately by King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammad with Simon McDonald, Special Envoy of British Prime Minister Theresa May.