The Netherlands will release an additional €7.5 million for salvage operations to secure the FSO Safer, the floating oil storage vessel off the coast of Yemen.
Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Liesje Schreinemacher hopes that this amount will help to bridge the current funding gap, thereby allowing recovery efforts to begin. The salvage operation, which is being led by the United Nations, is aimed at preventing a major oil spill.
Ms Schreinemacher announced this additional contribution during a visit to Yemen. In May of this year, the Netherland organised a donor conference in collaboration with the UN to raise money for salvaging the Safer. At that time the government made an initial contribution of €7.5 million.
As the minister noted:
The Safer is a ticking timebomb. We need swift action. It’s encouraging that so many countries have pledged their financial support. Thanks in part to the Netherlands’ contribution we now have the necessary funds to start salvaging the vessel
On September 21, in the margins of the UN General Assembly, the Netherlands, the US and Germany will hold a meeting in which the UN and various partners can look ahead to the necessary follow-up steps and to how the operation will actually be carried out.
At the port of Aden, Ms Schreinemacher spoke with Prime Minister Ma’een Abdulmalik Sa’ed and a number of other ministers, stressing the importance of achieving lasting peace in the country.
The voices of the victims must be heard, and the perpetrators of serious offences must not be allowed to get away with their crimes. This is why the Netherlands supports Yemeni organisations and the UN in its investigation into human rights violations during the conflict
Ms Schreinemacher remarked.
