ISTANBUL

Türkiye on Friday said that "the prevailing situation" in Yemen is a "source of concern."

In a statement, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said Ankara welcomes Saudi Arabia’s "prudent stance" in the face of the current escalation, as well as the steps taken by Saudi Arabia and the UAE to foster security and stability in Yemen.

Ankara will continue backing all efforts to safeguard Yemen’s unity, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and to ensure peace and prosperity in the country, the statement added.

Situation in eastern Yemen

Since Dec. 3, the Southern Transitional Council (STC) forces have taken control of parts of eastern Yemen’s Hadramout following clashes with the Hadramout Tribes Alliance and government-aligned First Military Region forces.

Four days later, STC forces expanded their control to another eastern province Mahra, which had been under government authority.

A joint Saudi-Emirati military team was dispatched to Aden in southern Yemen to put arrangements in place with the STC that would ensure its forces return to their previous positions outside the two provinces.

The takeover prompted mounting local and regional calls for STC forces to withdraw from Hadramout and Mahra, which together account for nearly half of Yemen’s territory, about 555,000 square kilometers.

The UN has warned that continued escalation could have serious consequences for Yemen, which is already facing one of the world’s worst humanitarian and economic crises.