France Attempts to Seek Control of Yemen Gas Facility to Reduce Russian Fuel Dependency
A former Yemeni foreign minister says the French Foreign Legion, a military force comprising of foreign nationals, arrived on 21st August, in the impoverished Arab country’s southern province of Shabwah in a quest to secure control of a gas facility there. Abu Bakr al-Qirbi tweeted, saying that there are French “preparations being made to export gas from the Balhaf facility … in light of increased international gas prices,” in an attempt to reduce Europe’s reliance on Russian gas amid the global energy crisis exacerbated by the conflict in Ukraine. He even suggested that the French move “could be the reason for recent clashes in Shabwah,” pointing out that the arrival of French forces to the area is meant to “provide protection for the facility.” This came after Paris and Abu Dhabi signed an energy cooperation deal for the joint production of liquefied natural gas (LNG). However, the parliament of the Sana’a-based National Salvation Government warned about the apprehensive activities of American and French troops in the occupied areas of southern Yemen. The board later issued a statement, alerting against suspicious activities of forces associated with the US and France — the two main supporters of the Riyadh-led war against Yemen, in the country’s southern occupied cities. France has recently found itself embroiled in skepticism after its involvement in the Saudi War against Yemen. Back in June, several rights groups announced the filing of a lawsuit in a Paris court against three French arms-producing companies, citing that they are part of the war crimes committed in Yemen by selling weapons to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The people of Yemen have also asked for the withdrawal of all foreign forces from the country as claims surfaced that the Saudi-led coalition stole billions of dollars’ worth of Yemen’s oil in the last four years. The Yemeni government forces recently clashed with UAE-backed southern separatist forces in Balhaf located in the gas-rich Shabwa province resulting in many casualties.
Written by Zamena Manekia Manji, voice by Fatima El-Zein, produced by Mehrab Hasan
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