Gulf and Red Sea Regions

The European Parliament discussed the humanitarian and political updates in Yemen this week. The EU Parliament stressed the need to increase humanitarian support to Yemen. The Parliament outlined its vision in a resolution released on 11 February, which also marks the 10 year anniversary of the popular uprisings that toppled former president, Ali Abdullah Saleh. 

The Bahraini Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani, met with the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, and the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, during a visit to Brussels. 

Iran began its nationwide vaccination campaign against COVID-19 on Tuesday, using the Russian made Sputnik V vaccine. The first shots are being given to frontline health workers. Iran is one of the Middle East's worst-affected countries with 1,481,396 total infections and 58,625 deaths. Its health sector has continuously been under severe pressure and the country faced one of the deadliest outbreak of the illness. 

The European Commission has published its long-awaited strategy for taking forward its relationship with its southern neighbours. It proposes "a new, ambitious and innovative Agenda for the Mediterranean, drawing for the first time on the full EU toolbox and the ground-breaking opportunities of the twin green and digital transitions, in order to relaunch our cooperation and realise the untapped potential of our shared region".

The State’s lack of legitimacy in Yemen over many decades created a vacuum which has been exploited by key socio-political groups that felt marginalised, resulting in the erosion of the country’s sovereignty. In this op-ed Noman Ahmed argues that addressing this issue is key for any future peace process to succeed.

A delegation of European Ambassadors arrived in Aden, Yemen on Saturday (6 February) for meetings with the leadership of Yemen's legitimate government and to support a comprehensive and sustainable peace for the country. The delegation, led by Hans Grundberg, EU Ambassador to Yemen, met Prime Minister Maeen Abdul Malik Saeed and Foreign Minister Ahmed Bin Mubarak. 

The UAE’s Minister of Culture and Youth, has conducted a study on the use of the Arabic language online. The study recommended the use of an observatory to track the use and development of the Arabic language last week. The study examines the role that publishing companies, technology and academia play in sustaining and enriching the Arabic language.

The United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Mark Lowcock, warned that the situation in Ethiopia's Tigray region could trigger wider destabilisation given the security vacuum caused by the recent military campaign.