President Saleh returns from Russia visit

SANA’A,(Saba) – President Ali Abdullah Saleh returned early Wednesday to Sana’a after a successful visit to Russia. During the visit Saleh held talks with the Russian presidentVladimir Putin and a number of Russian officials to enhance joint cooperation and Yemeni-Russian mutual relations as well as the regional and international developments. They also exchanged views on the Yemeni plan to solve the Iraqi and Palestinian issues and restore peace in the region as well as the ideas of political and democracy reform in the region. In remarks to Saba, President Saleh expressed comfort over the outcomes of the visit and talks he held in Moscow. He said results of the visit were “positive” and that the two sides voiced reciprocal views over regional and international developments, mainly the situation in Palestine and Iraq as well as the anti-terror efforts. President Saleh pointed out to the two countries’ keenness to push bilateral ties forward in various domains, including economic, trade, military cooperation. He underlined need to consolidate Arab-Russian relationships, indicating to the fact that Russia plays a vital role in achieving stability and security in the region. “As we noticed, the Russian leadership has a great interest in playing that role, since Russia is in good standing and has interest and a desire to help accomplish peace in the region,” Saleh said. Saleh also hailed the Yemeni-Russian ties, saying that deep-rooted friendship ties between the two countries would see more development. JW/KMSABA