[23/November/2008]

SANA'A, Nov. 23 (Saba) - Yemen is to host next January the 2nd consultative meeting of countries bordering the Red Sea on how end the piracy phenomenon in the Gulf of Aden, the state-run www.26.sep.net reported on Sunday.

The website quoted deputy Minister of Foreign Ali al-Ayashi as saying that the first regional meeting on combating the piracy which recently concluded in the Egyptian capital Cairo, had discussed economic, political and legal sides of this phenomenon.

Al-Ayashi made clear that the meeting stressed the role of the African Union, the U.N. and the Arab League to combat the piracy in the Gulf of Aden.

"The meeting's agenda came out with recommendations to form a legal, economic and political committee for finding the proposals and ways to stop the piracy in the region", said al-Ayashi.

"The meeting supported efforts to fight sea piracy which threatens the international trade route, condemning the hijacking of a Saudi tanker by Somali pirates".

The Yemeni official pointed out that the regional states concerns about the presence of the multinational forces, stressing the importance of establishing a regional anti-piracy center to boost security cooperation and fight this rampant phenomenon.

MD/YA