Yemeni president calls for democratic elections

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has called upon the Yemeni opposition to nominate its candidate for the direct voting presidential elections due to be held in Yemen in October.

AFP quoted the Yemeni president as saying in a statement published on Tuesday by the United Arab Emirates daily al-Khaleej: "We find that having 10 candidates as a maximum number for competition is acceptable. Therefore we have called upon political parties and organizations in the national arena to convene their conferences so as to elect their candidates to compete for the presidential elections in a democratic way provides for establishing solid rules and ensure positive and vaster competition among all."

Replying to a question on whether he will nominate himself for the Presidency, the Yemeni President said it is premature to talk about this matter at this meantime. He said this matter (his nomination for the presidency) is not in his hands, rather at the hands of the General People's Conference which will hold a conference in July to determine its candidate for the presidential elections.

Meanwhile, the Yemeni president expressed his country's desire that relations with Kuwait will return to what they had been before.

He welcomed statements made by Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah on extending an invitation to his Yemeni counterpart, Abdul Qader Bajmal, to visit Yemen.