UAE welcomes Saudi efforts to support security in Yemen amid STC advance

Statement comes day after Saudi Arabia told Yemeni separatists to withdraw from eastern governorates seized this month.Published On 26 Dec 2025The United Arab Emirates has welcomed Saudi ‍Arabian efforts ‍to support security and stability in Yemen and remains committed to backing stability in the country, the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.The UAE statement on Friday came a day after Saudi Arabia said it hopes Yemen’s main southern separatist group, the ⁠Southern Transitional Council (STC), will end an escalation and withdraw its forces from the eastern provinces of Hadramout and al-Mahra.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Analysis: Yemen’s future after the separatist STC’s expansion eastwardslist 2 of 3Yemen’s government, Houthis agree to exchange thousands of prisonerslist 3 of 3Saudi Arabia demands Yemeni separatists leave seized governoratesend of listThe STC, which previously received military and financial backing from the UAE, pushed the ​Saudi-backed, internationally recognised government from its headquarters in Aden while ‍claiming broad control across the south earlier this month.“The UAE reaffirmed its steadfast commitment to supporting all endeavours aimed at strengthening stability and development in Yemen,” ‍the Emirati Foreign ⁠Ministry said in its statement.On December 12, a joint Saudi-Emirati military delegation arrived in Aden to discuss measures aimed at defusing tensions in the country.Saudi Arabia ​said the teams were sent to make “the ‌necessary arrangements” to ensure the return of STC forces to their previous positions outside the two provinces, adding that the efforts were still in progress.The STC advance has threatened to prompt a confrontation within a fragile coalition that has been battling the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen’s north for a decade.The separatists were initially part of the alliance that intervened in Yemen in 2015 against the ‌Houthis. But the group has turned ⁠on the government and sought self-rule in the south.