Mohammed Mohammed Saleh
Deputy Head Sana'a Chamber of Commerce
Sana'a, Yemen
Dear Mr. Saleh,
I was surprised and disappointed to see articles in several newspapers, July 31 claiming to report on statements that I am alleged to have made during out meeting yesterday at the Chamber of Commerce, including assertions I reportedly made that the U.S. advocates a return to the negotiating table as the solution to the crisis and belives that President Saleh's return here is necessary to resolve Yemen's political and economic crises.
As you know, I made no such assertion during out meeting, which was focused solely on the economic challenges that Yemen faces. For an accurate account of our discussion, I draw your attention to the statement on the meeting posted by the Chamber of Commerce on their website www.sccci-yemen.org.
Furthermore, U.S. perspectives regarding the political crisis Yemen is currently experiencing cannot be more clear and have been stated on multiple occasions by President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton: the United States believes that, in order to address the political situation here, President Saleh should begin the transition of power immediately and sign and implement the Gulf Cooperation Council initiative. This position was reiterated by the Deputy National Security Advisor, John Bernnan, as recently as July 10, when he stated that "the United States believes that a transition in Yemen should begin immediately so that the Yemeni people can realize their aspirations."
The U.S. Embassy values its relationship with the Yemen Chamber of Commerce and is anxious to see further progress in our cooperation, which can support our interest in advancing bilateral economic cooperation. But we cannot maintain a relationship with the Sana'a Chamber of Commerce if comments that Embassy officials make in discussions at the Chamber are to be misrepresented in the press. I urge you to take action to correct the false statements in the following newspapers: al-Thawra, 26 September, and al-Motamar.
Sincerely,
Ting Wu
Economic Officer
Minta Madeley
Acting Public Affairs Chief
Deputy Head Sana'a Chamber of Commerce
Sana'a, Yemen
Dear Mr. Saleh,
I was surprised and disappointed to see articles in several newspapers, July 31 claiming to report on statements that I am alleged to have made during out meeting yesterday at the Chamber of Commerce, including assertions I reportedly made that the U.S. advocates a return to the negotiating table as the solution to the crisis and belives that President Saleh's return here is necessary to resolve Yemen's political and economic crises.
As you know, I made no such assertion during out meeting, which was focused solely on the economic challenges that Yemen faces. For an accurate account of our discussion, I draw your attention to the statement on the meeting posted by the Chamber of Commerce on their website www.sccci-yemen.org.
Furthermore, U.S. perspectives regarding the political crisis Yemen is currently experiencing cannot be more clear and have been stated on multiple occasions by President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton: the United States believes that, in order to address the political situation here, President Saleh should begin the transition of power immediately and sign and implement the Gulf Cooperation Council initiative. This position was reiterated by the Deputy National Security Advisor, John Bernnan, as recently as July 10, when he stated that "the United States believes that a transition in Yemen should begin immediately so that the Yemeni people can realize their aspirations."
The U.S. Embassy values its relationship with the Yemen Chamber of Commerce and is anxious to see further progress in our cooperation, which can support our interest in advancing bilateral economic cooperation. But we cannot maintain a relationship with the Sana'a Chamber of Commerce if comments that Embassy officials make in discussions at the Chamber are to be misrepresented in the press. I urge you to take action to correct the false statements in the following newspapers: al-Thawra, 26 September, and al-Motamar.
Sincerely,
Ting Wu
Economic Officer
Minta Madeley
Acting Public Affairs Chief
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