RIYADH — Saudi Arabia, as the president of the G20 in 2020, has led many initiatives regionally and globally to mitigate the repercussions of COVID-19 pandemic in order to achieve long-term stability in the region, said Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, Supervisor-General of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center and at the Royal Court. Dr. Al-Rabeeah made the remarks during the Helsinki Policy Forum, which was held virtually on Tuesday in the Finnish capital and was headed by Finland's Minister of Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto and with the participation of a number of representatives of European Union and MENA region countries. Dr. Al-Rabeeah added that the goals of the Saudi initiatives include an end to the escalation of conflicts in the region, non- interference in internal affairs of other countries, and implementation of measures that achieve stability in the Middle East region leading to the prosperity of the region with a vibrant economy. KSrelief chief said that as an embodiment of these initiatives, Saudi Arabia announced a donation of $500 million to support global efforts against the coronavirus pandemic. He pointed out that Saudi Arabia through KSrelief has provided medical assistance to countries in the region to combat COVID-19. The Kingdom provided medical supplies and equipment to Yemen worth $25 million, to Palestine amounting to $4 million, and to Somalia worth $3 million. Saudi Arabia is also preparing to support many other countries and regions in need, especially African countries. Dr. Al-Rabeeah said that everyone followed the generous donation announced by Saudi Arabia during a high-level pledging event to fund the humanitarian response plan for Yemen 2020, in which the Kingdom as the host pledged $500 million. Saudi Arabia has been the largest donor to Yemen in the past few years. He reiterated that the Kingdom's policy toward the security and stability of Yemen is unchanging, as Saudi Arabia has supported and continues to support every dialogue that brings political stability and peace in accordance with the United Nations; the Yemen National Dialogue Document; the Gulf Cooperation Council Initiative and United Nations Resolution 2216. Dr. Al Rabeeah pointed out that despite the support of the United Nations and the international community for the ceasefire initiatives taken by Saudi Arabia to reduce the aggravation of the humanitarian crisis in Yemen caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, some parties have not responded to that noble appeal.
