Saudi Arabia calls for meeting to discuss Yemen's southern issue

Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry on Saturday called for a comprehensive conference in Riyadh to bring together all southern factions of Yemen to discuss just solutions to its southern cause.

In a statement, the ministry said the meeting is being organized at the request of Chairman of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council Rashad Al-Alimi.

The ministry stressed that the only way to address the southern issue is through dialog "within the framework of a comprehensive political solution in Yemen."

Just a day earlier on Friday, the Ministry of Defense of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) published its stance on social media X.com that it has withdrawn all its remaining forces from Yemen. It also said the withdrawal was in line with a leadership decision to end the country's counterterrorism operations in Yemen.

Saudi Arabia backs Yemen's internationally recognized government and regards the country's eastern provinces as a key buffer zone for the security of its own southern border, while Yemen's Southern Transitional Council (STC) maintains close ties with the UAE.

The Saudi-backed Yemeni government on Friday launched a military operation against the STC in the southeastern oil-rich province of Hadramout, said provincial Governor Salem Al-Khanbashi.

The governor said the operation aims to restore state authority and ensure security and stability in the province, particularly around key government institutions and strategic facilities. He also added that the move came after repeated attempts to contain tensions through dialog had failed, accusing STC-affiliated forces of "undermining local security arrangements and challenging the authority of the internationally recognized government."

As tensions in southern Yemen have escalated, differences between Saudi Arabia, the STC and the UAE have become increasingly evident.

Since December 26, 2025, Saudi Arabia has carried out airstrikes on targets linked to the STC in southern Yemen, and also publicly argued that the UAE should respond to calls from Yemen to withdraw its remaining military forces from the country and halt all forms of military or financial support to any armed party inside Yemen.

Saudi Arabia calls for meeting to discuss Yemen's southern issue

Saudi Arabia calls for meeting to discuss Yemen's southern issue

Saudi Arabia calls for meeting to discuss Yemen's southern issue

Saudi Arabia calls for meeting to discuss Yemen's southern issue

The United States' strikes on Venezuela and its abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife on Saturday have drawn worldwide condemnations.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States has struck Venezuela and captured Maduro, who was flown out of the country along with his wife.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was deeply alarmed by the U.S. military actions, his spokesperson said in a statement.

"The Secretary-General continues to emphasize the importance of full respect -- by all -- of international law, including the UN Charter. He's deeply concerned that the rules of international law have not been respected," said the statement issued by spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.

China called on the United States to release Maduro and his wife at once, said a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson on Sunday.

China expresses grave concern over the U.S. forcible abduction of the Venezuelan President and his wife and taking them out of the country, said the spokesperson, adding that the U.S. move is in clear violation of international law, basic norms in international relations, and the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.

China calls on the United States to ensure the personal safety of Maduro and his wife, release them at once, stop toppling the government of Venezuela, and resolve issues through dialog and negotiation, said the spokesperson.

The Russian Foreign Ministry called for immediate clarification of the situation around Maduro and his wife after the U.S. aggression against Venezuela.

Russia is "extremely alarmed" by reports of Maduro and his wife's forcible removal from Venezuela during the U.S. action, the ministry said in a statement.

"We call for immediate clarification of this situation. Such actions, if they actually occurred, constitute an unacceptable infringement on the sovereignty of an independent state, respect for which is a key principle of international law," the ministry added.

The ministry also said that the United States committed "an act of armed aggression" against Venezuela, which causes deep concern and condemnation.

The ministry noted that Latin America must remain a zone of peace, and Venezuela must be guaranteed the right to determine its own destiny without any destructive and military interference from outside.

Tens of thousands of people gathered on Saturday in Havana, the capital of Cuba, to denounce the U.S. military actions against Venezuela and voice support for their Latin American brother in defending its sovereignty.

At the event, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said that Latin America is not the backyard of the United States and that it neither accepts nor recognizes the Monroe Doctrine.

Condemning the U.S. strikes on Venezuela and its kidnapping of Maduro, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said that such actions blatantly violated international law, and gravely infringed upon the sovereignty of Venezuela, leading to power politics rather than multilateralism and resulting in violence, chaos and turmoil.

He urged the international community to react in a strong manner through the United Nations.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro opposed the unilateral military action, urging de-escalation to protect civilians.

The Foreign Ministry of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Sunday condemned the U.S. actions against Venezuela for violating the country's sovereignty, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

"The DPRK Foreign Ministry strongly denounces the U.S. hegemony-seeking act committed in Venezuela as the most serious form of encroachment of sovereignty and as a wanton violation of the UN Charter and international laws," a ministry spokesperson was quoted by the KCNA as saying.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Sunday said on social media that the U.S. capture of Maduro and his wife constitutes a clear violation of international law and amounts to an unlawful use of force against a sovereign state.

He said that the Maduro couple must be released immediately, adding that U.S. actions erode fundamental restraints on the use of power between states and weakens the legal framework that underpins international order.

Within the EU, nations including Germany, Spain, Italy and Portugal said they are closely monitoring the situation and called for restraint and solutions based on international law.

The European Parliament criticized the U.S. action as illegal and destabilizing.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas on Saturday said on social media that the EU is closely monitoring the situation in Venezuela.

"Under all circumstances, the principles of international law and the UN Charter must be respected," she said.

US strikes on Venezuela draw international condemnation