Economic Relations between the Soviet Union and Yemen and the British Position on Them (1928-1938)

Abstract

The strategic geography of Yemen has been a coveted prize for international powers since the late nineteenth century, marked by fierce competition among major colonial powers, especially Britain and France. The British controlled Aden from 1839 until World War II in 1939. However, after the Soviet Union was established in 1922 and the Soviets began opening up to both the Western and Eastern worlds as part of the Kremlin’s foreign policy at the time, establishing trade relations with countries in the Arabian Peninsula during the 1920s, including Yemen, represented an important phase in the history of Arab-Soviet relations. Despite the intense international rivalry and hostility against the Soviet Union, the latter pursued a policy and diplomacy based on economic relations with the outside world. They succeeded in extending their influence toward the Arabian Peninsula, including Yemen, with which they signed the treaty known as the "Sana’a Treaty" in 1928, lasting a full decade, despite British and Italian competition against Soviet influence in the region.