The U.S. government is about to withdraw its support for the challenged Yemeni president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, and facilitate his departure, the daily New York Times charge, quoting U.S. and Yemeni officials.
Washington has long supported President Saleh, in power since 1978, and Barack Obama administration has refrained from publicly criticizing him. But the Americans have disclosed the Yemeni allies that their position is untenable, given the importance of contesting popular movement that they are facing, and they must leave their post, writes New York Times, cited by AFP.
Negotiations concerning the departure of the Yemeni president began a week ago, also notes the U.S. daily newspaper. Saleh would have been proposed to transfer power to a provisional government until new elections.
The incessant clashes between Saleh’s regime and his opponents “have a serious negative impact on security in Yemen”, said an official for the prestigious U.S. newspaper under the protection of anonymity.
According to diplomatic cables recently disclosed by Wikileaks, the Yemeni president succession issue has been discussed in the U.S. since 2005. The fall of their ally, would be, according to U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, “a real problem” for the U.S. At least 95 people have died since the outbreak of demonstrations in late January, in Yemen, according to Amnesty International.