Yemeni president to visit Canada for the first time

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh is to visit Canada on Sunday, and after his first official visit to Canada he will head for the US, for the first time since 1989.

An official source in Sanaa said it is decided that President Saleh will later visit Italy and the Vatican.

The Yemeni president explained that his tour aims at strengthening bilateral relations and areas of joint cooperation with the US, Italy and Canada. He added that he will discuss with officials in these countries, especially with US President Bill Clinton, developments in the Middle East peace process, the situations in Somalia and the African Horn and the question of security in the Red Sea.

He stressed that relations between Yemen and the US are good and continuously developing and that this visit will open for it wide prospects for developments.