The Obama administration is considering the establishment of a special fund to equip and train the Yemeni counterterror forces as fears grow about Al Qaeda threat in semi-failed country, U.S. military officials cited by Reuters have said.
The move comes after the fund established in 2009 to build up Pakistan's anti-terror capabilities, but the question remains: will the fund in Yemen receive support in the Congress as it was done with Pakistan's fund?
Critics say the Pentagon's role could be expanded in Yemen under the fund, fueling hostility against the U.S. amid fears about guarantees that the money would be directed for combating terror but not for other government priorities at a time when the government is tackling problems such as the Houthi insurgency in the far north and the secessionist movement in the south.
Amid such problems how can the Pentagon observe the use of equipment and money to be delivered for Yemen, some in the Congress question?
Al Qaeda may take advantage of it, they argue.
Yemeni security departments are also accused of human rights abuse through torturing prisoners and
I think it is different and requires a different diplomacy when it comes to Yemen, an expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace said.
Washington has urged Yemen to reach compromise with the rebels, the two sides in a sporadic war since 2004.
In case of a fund is established to combat the rebellion in the north, the Pentagon would have more tasks in Yemen including more training and providing more equipment for the Yemeni forces including counterterrorism units at the Interior Ministry.
On the fund in Pakistan, a U.S. official said it was a model that other country should follow.
The U.S. has announced it is increasing its military and financial aid to Yemen from $ 90 million in 2009 to $ 190 million this year and that the aid should be focused on training programs and providing Yemeni forces with equipment in a direct way.
Hours after the London Summit on Yemen on Wednesday, reports also surfaced that the Pentagon would send in weeks more troops to Yemen as part of a broad push to speed the training of Yemeni forces as well as helping the already existing U.S. troops in Yemen to build closer relationships with their Yemeni counterparts.
women who cheat on relationships
I cheated on my boyfriend