Yemen Political and Economical Environment

Republic of Yemen : Political Economic Assessment

Country Background

Yemen the only republic on the Arabian Peninsula is an important country in the Middle East located astride the Red Sea to the North of the Gulf of Aden . Yemen has a number of islands to its south which enhances its importance given that it overlooks the trade routes passing through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal . The population of the country is over 22 million , thereby making it one of the larger states of the Middle East . Yemen has been important throughout

history and is one of the oldest centers of civilization in the World with the earliest history dating back to 2300 BC . Thus the people of Yemen are firmly rooted in their identity and aware of their strategic geographic location

Political Environment

In more recent periods , Yemen was divided into two parts , North and South each under a different ruler and political system . North Yemen was a part of the Ottoman Empire for a long period with the Imams even extending their influence over the South . South Yemen has been a British colony since 1830 with the port of Aden proving to be a major strategic point for Britain as the sea route to India and the Far East , where a large number of British colonies were passed through the Red Sea . The British ensured security of Aden through a series of protectorates which acted as a buffer . In turn the British have been benefited as it provided security to the sea lanes passing across the Gulf of Aden

North Yemen was the first to become independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1918 though it was declared a republic in 1962 . The British withdrew from Aden passing on control of the area which came to be known as South Yemen . The two states were then officially known as the Yemen Arab Republic (North ) and the People 's Democratic Republic of Yemen (South but having united are now known as Republic of Yemen since 1990

Yemen 's civil war , President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his role in uniting Yemen (South North

The process of unification in 1990 was not smooth , relations continued to be strained and the situation came to a head with a number of conflicts affecting the ruling coalition . Political rivals tended to settle scores amongst themselves leading to the exile of Vice President Ali Salim Al-Bidh with a weak Haydar Abu Bakr Al-Attas placed as the prime minister . In 1994 , the crisis erupted into open hostilities with violent clashes between the northern and southern factions . This was mostly in Southern Yemen with a series of air and missile strikes in the North . With the international community supporting unity of Yemen , the civil war came to an end with the southern secessionists finally giving up on 7 July 1994 . While the civil war was short extending from May to July , yet its impact has been extensive in creating a general atmosphere of rift

President Ali Abdullah Saleh...