Advisor at the Royal Court and Supervisor General of King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) Dr. Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Rabeeah said that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as the president of the 2020 G20, has led many initiatives regionally and globally to mitigate the repercussions of COVID-19 pandemic. This came during his participation in the Helsinki Policy Forum, which was held virtually yesterday in Helsinki, Finland and was headed by Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto and with participation of a number of representatives of European Union and MENA region countries. Dr. Al Rabeeah affirmed that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as the host of the G20 summit and a major player in the region, has implemented many initiatives regionally and globally, including to mitigate the repercussions and effects of COVID-19 in order to achieve long-term stability in the region. He added that the goals of these initiatives include stopping the escalation of conflicts in the region, calling for an end to interference in internal affairs of other countries, and implementing the measures that achieve stability in the Middle East region leading to the prosperity of the region's countries and active economy. The Supervisor General said that, as an embodiment of these initiatives, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announced a donation of $ 500 million, as follows: $ 200 million to support the World Health Organization in the fight against the pandemic globally; $ 150 million to support Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, to obtain a vaccine to help countries in need; $ 150 million to support the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) towards vaccine development; and $ 10 million to support the WHO fund to support countries with fragile health systems. He pointed out that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, through King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief), has provided support for countries in the region with medical assistance to combat COVID-19, as Saudi Arabia provided medical supplies and tools for Yemen worth $ 25 million, for Palestine amounting to $ 4 million, and for 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 the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during its hosting of the High-Level Pledging Event to fund the Humanitarian Response Plan for Yemen 2020, which was held virtually for the first time, as Saudi Arabia pledged $ 500 million emanating from its position as the largest donor to Yemen in the past few years. He reiterated that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's policy towards the security and stability of Yemen is unchanging, as the Kingdom of 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 to confirm this position, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia called for supporting the initiative of the United Nations envoy including the Stockholm Agreement, a ceasefire by all parties throughout the month of Ramadan, and holding political negotiations that reduce the aggravation of the humanitarian crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, adding that despite the support of the United Nations and the international community for the initiatives of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, some parties have not responded to that noble appeal.
