The Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) held an emergency meeting on Friday, July 12, 2024, to discuss a UN request for support in launching a dialogue to address the country's economic crisis. The PLC, led by Rashad Al-Alimi, with the exception of Faraj Al-Bahsani, affirmed its commitment to a clear agenda for participating in any dialogue on the economic situation, according to the official Yemeni news agency Saba.

In response to the request from UN Special Envoy Hans Grundberg, the PLC stipulated three conditions: the resumption of oil exports, the unification of the national currency, and the revocation of all arbitrary measures against the banking sector and the business community.

The PLC highlighted the government and the Central Bank of Yemen's ongoing reforms aimed at improving living conditions, mitigating the currency's depreciation, safeguarding the banking system, strengthening oversight of banks and their external transactions, and ensuring compliance with transparency standards and anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing requirements.

The PLC addressed threats from the Houthi group, internationally designated as a terrorist organization, to escalate military operations and return the country to all-out war, disregarding the prolonged humanitarian suffering. In this regard, the PLC reiterated its commitment to deterring the Houthi group's arbitrary actions.

The PLC emphasized its maximum flexibility and openness to discussing any proposals that would strengthen the independence of the banking sector and the legal authority of the state in the temporary capital, Aden.

The PLC urged the Houthis not to evade internal and popular pressures, particularly concerning living conditions, by resorting to catastrophic ventures and continuing to exploit the Palestinian people's suffering and their just cause. This propagandistic approach, the PLC stated, has proven its falsity and failure over the past years in changing the convictions of the Yemeni people, regional stances, and international positions.

The PLC warned the Houthis against returning to the option of full-scale escalation, which it said would exacerbate suffering and destroy what remains of the Yemeni people's meager livelihoods and resources. It also warned against undermining Saudi and Omani efforts to end the war and restore peace, stability, and development. The PLC underscored the readiness of the armed forces, in all their formations, to deter any hostile actions by the Houthis.

Earlier, the leader of the Houthi group, internationally designated as a terrorist organization, threatened in a televised speech broadcast by the group's Al-Masirah channel to target Saudi airports and ports, accusing the kingdom of being behind recent decisions by the Central Bank of Yemen.

In recent decisions, Governor Ahmed Al-Ma'abqi has revoked the licenses of 26 exchange companies since late last month and ordered the closure of their branches indefinitely for violating bank regulations and instructions.

These decisions follow two previous ones, imposing a unified network for domestic transfers, banning dealings with 12 unlicensed electronic payment entities, and permanently halting operations of local money transfer networks owned by banks, financial institutions, or exchange companies operating in Yemen.

On May 30, the Central Bank of Yemen in Aden, declared as the temporary capital, issued a decision to stop dealing with six Yemeni banks and financial institutions after the expiry of a 60-day deadline to implement its decision to relocate their main headquarters to Aden.

The Central Bank also issued another decision urging all individuals, commercial establishments, companies, other entities, and financial and banking institutions holding pre-2016 banknotes of various denominations to deposit them within a maximum period of 60 days from the date of the announcement.