RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s ministry of foreign affairs has welcomed the UN announcement that more than one million barrels of oil from the decaying Yemeni tanker, has been transferred successfully, Arab media reported.
Saudi Arabia Hails UN Announcement of Successful Tanker Mission
Under the operation, 1.14 million barrels of oil was taken from the dilapidated vessel, ending the looming risk of an oil spill.
The @UN has successfully transferred 1 million barrels of oil from a decaying tanker off the coast of Yemen, preventing an environmental & humanitarian catastrophe.
I urge donors to help bring this project to completion and remove any remaining threat to the Red Sea.
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) August 11, 2023
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a statement said the ship-to-ship transfer of oil from the FSO Safer to the Yemen replacement vessel has been safely concluded to avoid an environmental hazard.
Achim Steiner, head of the UN’s Development Program, termed the development as one of the most significant preventative actions taken in recent years.
The Saudi foreign ministry lauded the efforts of Guterres and the UN working team to end the issue of the Safer tanker.
Saudi Arabia was one of the first donor countries to provide financial aid for the operation to remove the oil via the King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Aid.
The oil tanker has been stuck in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen, near the port of Hodeidah, for more than eight years.
