Saudi, UAE talk military cooperation after Yemen rebel truce offer

Abu Dhabi, Oct 7 (AFP/APP):Top officials from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, key players in a coalition fighting Yemeni rebels, have discussed military cooperation following a positive response by Riyadh to a truce offer from the insurgents.

Saudi’s deputy defence minister Prince Khalid bin Salman met with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan in the UAE capital to discuss “coordination and joint action in defence and military affairs”, Emirati state news agency WAM reported on Monday.

Read: Yemen Conflict: Houthis fires missiles on Saudi Airport escalating.

The two officials, who spoke late Sunday, also discussed the “challenges” facing the Gulf region and “their implications on the security” of the region, WAM said.

Last week, Prince Khalid said on Twitter that a truce offer made last month by Yemen’s Huthi rebels was “perceived positively” by the kingdom and hoped it would be “implemented effectively”.

Read: Gov’t forces recapture Yemeni city from separatists