Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi stressed to Yemen's Prime Minister Ahmed Obeid Bin Daghr the importance of avoiding a long-term armed conflict in Yemen, during a Cairo meeting on Monday, state owned MENA agency reported. In a statement, presidential spokesperson Alaa Youssef said El-Sisi asserted the importance of the ongoing negotiations sponsored by the United Nations to reach a political solution to the Yemeni crisis that comes in accordance with international legitimacy to allow for reconstruction as soon as possible. El-Sisi said Egypt was keen on providing the needed support for Yemen so they can overcome the current conflicts and focus on development and restoration in a way that accomplishes Yemeni people's aspirations to restore peace and stability. According to the Egyptian statement, the Yemeni prime minister delivered a message from Yemeni President Abd Rabu Mansour Hadi, where he expressed his appreciation for Egypt's support for the legitimate government in Yemen, whether in the frame of the Saudi-led military coalition or through defending Yemeni interests in the UN's Security Council. Egypt has been participating with naval and air forces in the Saudi-led military coalition against Houthi rebels in Yemen since the coalition was launched in March 2015. The Yemeni prime minister arrived in Cairo on Sunday for meetings with the Egyptian president and top Egyptian officials on the recent developments in Yemen, as well as discussions on the bilateral relations between the two countries. Daghr also presented recent developments in his country, pointing at his government's wish to restore peace and stability in Yemen while holding to Yemeni unity. The conflict in Yemen pits the internationally recognised government of President Hadi and the Saudi-led coalition against armed Shia rebels, the Houthis, who have allied with ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh. After UN-backed peace talks to end the conflict collapsed last week, the Houthis and former president Saleh's General People's Congress set up a governing council to rule the country, despite UN and government opposition.
