The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is celebrating its 90th National Day in the backdrop of numerous achievements and transformations it has witnessed in recent years at various levels under the wise and capable leadership of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman. It is a well-deserved celebration of a unique day in human history that witnessed the birth of a country, and for remarkable feats it made in a record period of time which otherwise appeared impossible given the size of the country. The Kingdom has witnessed a comprehensive renaissance in the political, economic, developmental and human resource fields, and joined the select group of nations and people and is regarded as one of the most influential countries in the region and the world. It is not an exaggeration on my part if I say that celebrating the Kingdom's National Day does not only represent the leadership, government and people of Saudi Arabia, but it also represents the countries and people of the Arab and Islamic world and all countries of the world as well. They hold Saudi Arabia in an esteemed position in terms of its religious significance; its central position for the Arab and Islamic Ummah; its role to maintain security and stability in the region and the world; and its noble stances that extend to encompass the entire world. In Yemen, the celebration of the Kingdom's National Day acquires an exceptional place as far as the Yemenis are concerned. This is mainly because of the fact that the Kingdom stood by them in all upheavals and hard times that Yemen had gone through. The relations emanate from blood ties, brotherhood, neighborhood and history, specifically the strategic and pivotal relations between the two neighboring countries and their people. Perhaps the strong bonds between the two counties can also be attributed to the position taken by the Kingdom and its wise leadership to stand by the Yemeni side. Saudi Arabia extended its unlimited support to the legitimate government, people and the Yemeni army in their decisive battle to confront the terrorist Houthi militia, which was established, trained and supported to implement the Iranian regime's scheme to target the security and stability of the region and the international trade movement. The Kingdom's response was decisive with the formation of the Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen in response to the courageous appeal made by the fighter President Abd Rabbu Manosur Hadi to save his country. Had the Kingdom not taken this historic decision, the subsequent events would have taken a dangerous turn, threatening the security of the region and the world. Since the Houthi coup in 2014, the Kingdom has granted Yemen nearly $17 billion in aid, including many developmental, relief and humanitarian projects and programs implemented by King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSRelief), and the Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen in the fields of educational, agricultural, fisheries, and infrastructure projects in various Yemeni governorates. In addition to this, the Kingdom extended aid to Yemenis stranded within the Kingdom, apart from bilateral government assistance. The Kingdom also deposited $3 billion to support the local currency and the Yemeni economy, besides implementing the "Masam" project to clear Yemeni territories of landmines and live ammunition. Apart from all these, the Kingdom hosts more than two million Yemeni expatriates working in various sectors, and they are the breadwinners of more than ten million people in Yemen. These expatriates represent the backbone of the country, and their financial remittances contribute to maintaining the stability of the national economy and preventing the collapse of the currency. — The author is Yemen's Minister of Information Muammar Al-Eryani can be reached on Twitter: @ERYANIM
