President meets with French PM

Saba

PARIS, Oct. 12 (Saba)- President Ali Abdullah Saleh met on Tuesday with the French Prime Minister François Fillon. During the meeting, they reviewed the bilateral relations and fields of common cooperation in different areas; cultural, political, economic, security, counterterrorism and combating sea piracy. They talked over the role of France within Friends of Yemen Group to support Yemen and its developmental and democratic process, in addition to the latest development in the region topped by peace process and situations in Somalia, the Horn of Africa, Afghanistan and Iraq. The French Premier praised the Yemeni-French relations, affirming interest of France to reinforce its ties and partnership with Yemen as well as supporting it in the domains of counterterrorism and democratic development. He pointed out that France will continue to be an important partner for Yemen and will support its security and stability as it serves security and stability in the region. For his part, President Saleh hailed the continuous growth of the Yemeni and French relations, indicating the various cooperation areas linking Yemen and France. He also praised the supportive stances of France to Yemen, out of which is its stance in 1994, affirming the role France in supporting Yemen either within Friends of Yemen Group or the European group. AMAM