BETWEEN HEGEMONIC ASPIRATIONS AND THE NEED FOR PEACE AND STABILITY: - SAUDI ARABIA’S ROLE IN

The second analyzes the dynamics of the current Saudi role in the south, from Operation Decisive Storm to the conclusion of the Riyadh Agreement. [...] The third addresses the peace dilemma in Yemen: the future of faltering Saudi mediation efforts in the south and ways of directing the positive, balancing aspects of the Saudi role toward a resolution of the conflict and lasting political reform. [...] The first involved: dismantling the armed forces of the STC in Shabwa, where pro-government forces had defeated the Emirati-backed Shabwani Elite in the August fighting; the immediate deployment of Saudi and government forces at the governorate’s airport; and imposing the six-region federation plan, isolating the STC (which never gave its assent) in the western governorates of the south. [...] Just as the presence of a hostile state in Yemen’s south was a motive for Saudi support to North Yemen in the 1970s and 1980s, the entrenching of Houthi power in the north could push Riyadh to throw its support behind a southern secession plan as part of a final resolution of the conflict. [...] ORG Introduction Historical overview A border dispute and an ideological battle The invasion of Kuwait and attempted secession of the south Erosion of the system of unity and the rise of non-state actors The Houthi takeover of Sana’a Saudi policy during the war: From storm to pacification Hosting Hadi and the battle for southern Yemen Saudi and Emirati Aims Diverge Return to pacification Saudi Ara.