Riyadh – A high-profile international pledging conference for Yemen will kick off in Geneva on Tuesday, as part of the Humanitarian Response Plan 2017, in the presence of Yemeni Prime Minister Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr.

Held under the auspices of Switzerland and Germany, the conference is organized by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and will be presided by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Stephen O’Brien.

The Yemeni prime minister will separately meet, on the sidelines of the conference, with Guterres, foreign affairs ministers of Switzerland and Germany, the director general of the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), and O’Brien, as well as the Japanese delegation to the conference and the ambassadors of 18 countries supporting the Gulf Initiative to resolve the crisis in Yemen.

Bin Daghr will also hold talks with ambassadors of Gulf countries, according to the Yemeni official news agency.

On the eve of the conference, the Yemeni premier met with the ambassadors of the GCC countries accredited to Switzerland.

During the meeting, bin Daghr praised the role of GCC countries and their support for the legitimate authority in Yemen.

The prime minister gave the ambassadors an overview about recent developments in Yemen and achievements made by the legitimate government.

Bin Daghr stressed that his country and the GCC states were facing a very critical stage, which “requires further cooperation”.

He denounced Iran’s interference in Yemen’s internal affairs by backing the Houthi-Saleh militias.

The prime minister pointed out that the legitimate government – backed by the Saudi-led Coalition – has scored major victories in fighting terrorism.

He noted that most of the humanitarian assistance that Yemen receives came from “brothers in the Gulf and in particular Saudi Arabia”, through King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Aid (KSRELIEF).

For their part, the GCC States’ ambassadors expressed readiness to deploy all possible efforts to serve the Yemeni case in this critical situation, reaffirming the GCC leaders’ commitment to support Yemen’s economy, development and relief.