U.S. affirms its support to Yemen in development, anti-terrorism fields =

SANA'S, Jan.02 (Saba) - General David H. Petraeus, Commander of the US =
Central Command (CENTCOM), affirmed
on Saturday his country's support to Yemen and its efforts in the field =
of development and combating terrorism.

This came during his meeting with President Ali Abdullah Saleh on =
Saturday in Sana'a, during which he conveyed a letter from the U.S.
President Barack Obama to President Saleh.
The letter dealt with the bilateral relations and the joint cooperation =
fields between the two friendly countries, including the security field =
and the fight against terrorism
and sea piracy.
The U.S. official pointed out that the U.S is keen to strengthen its =
relations and the joint cooperation with Yemen so as to serve the common =
interests of the two countries.
He congratulated President Saleh on the success of the pre-emptive =
operations recently carried out by the security and air forces against =
the al-Qaeda hideouts in provinces
of Abyan and Shabwa in the south and Arhab district in the capital =
Sana'a.
These operations affirm Yemen's determination to hunt down the =
terrorist elements of al-Qaeda and support the international community =
efforts in combating terrorism so
as to serve the security and stability in the regions and the world, he =
indicated.
For his part, President Saleh noted to the Yemeni-American relations =
and what they witness from growing development , praising the U.S.
support to Yemen whether in the developmental field or combating =
terrorism or military training and coastguard fields.
President Saleh confirmed our country's keenness to enhance its =
relations and cooperation with the U.S to serve the joint interests of =
the two countries.
He reaffirmed that Yemen, which has suffered so much from terrorism, =
would continue its efforts in combating terrorism and cooperate with the =
international community in
this area, as the terrorism is a dangerous phenomenon threatening the =
security and safety of all.
BA