Prime Minister Theresa May left London late Tuesday for a three-day visit to the Middle East, where she will meet Saudi and Jordanian leaders in a bid to bolster regional ties. The British leader will hold talks on issues including Qatar and Yemen with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, before heading to Jordan for meetings with King Abdullah II and Prime Minister Hani Mulki. In Saudi Arabia, she is expected to reiterate her support for the kingdom’s fledgling social reform programme, which saw an end to the infamous ban on women driving last September. Britain’s largest trading partner in the Middle East, London has signed off on more than £3.3 billion (€3.7 billion, $4.4 billion) worth of arms sales to Riyadh since March 2015. During that time Saudi Arabia has embarked on a bombing campaign in Yemen that has been condemned for contributing to a humanitarian disaster.

Source: Dhaka Tribune November 28, 2017 22:41 UTC