Almotamar.net - A report issued by the Shoura Council’s Politics & External Relations Committee mentioned Thursday that through its relations with the European Union EU Yemen works for attracting European investments and cooperation in the area of transferring technology and enhancement of cooperation in fighting terror.

The report also mentioned that Yemen also seeks to expand the economic support through grants and assistance for the success of programmes for development and economic reforms as well as financing projects of the development five-year plans and support for Yemen’s democratic experience.

The report, a copy of which almotamar.net obtained, affirmed that Yemen’s policy towards the EU stems from its desire for openness to the international politics I addition that European countries represent the most t important of world economic blocs and most important world partners for Yemen in both exports and imports.

The official report also praised the level of the European support for Yemen and said the EU represents an important supporter of development in Yemen in the economic, social, cultural and political dimensions especially in the area of democratic change and human rights. It made it clear the joint Yemeni-European committee is considered the most important of mechanisms of cooperation between Yemen and the EU.

The report made it clear that through the joint committee the Yemeni and European Union relations witnessed great development in the past years the latest of which announcement of the European Commission raising the developmental assistance to Yemen to 81 million euro for the years 2007-2010. The decagon came during convening the 14th session of the joint committee in Brussels in June 2007.

The report revealed that the EU offered assistance amounted to six million euro to support Yemen for joining the World Trade Organisation WTO. The Europeans also offered 68 million euro as a financial support used for water and agriculture projects and the non-governmental organisations were also offered $ 5 million. As for the area of human rights and the Supreme Commission for elections the EU offered a technical support in addition to humanitarian areas such as the support for fighting cholera and children vaccination.

The report considered the Yemeni-European Political dialogue Committee as one of the channels of communication.

As for the commitments and allocations the EU offered to Yemen they amounted to 227.5 million euro in the period 1978-2001 and the period 1995-2001 formed an average of 80% of those European commitments.

The report mentioned that the commitments and allocations for economic and developmental projects amounted to 75.8 million euro and the EU allocated 65.5 million euro as food aid and support for the food security.

On the other hand the report pointed out that the EU imports from Yemen mineral oil by 70-80% in addition to animals and animal skins. European exports to Yemen are more diversified and form80% o. in general the European Yemeni trade constitutes around 15-25 of the total Yemeni trade.