US Secretary of State John Kerry.

US Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Saudi Arabia on Wednesday for talks on regional conflicts that are hampering all efforts to restore peace and security in the Middle East.

Kerry, who is currently in Kenya, will stay in the Saudi capital for two days for wide-ranging consultations with his Gulf counterparts before going to Paris.

Stewart Wight, a spokesman of the US Embassy in Riyadh, told Arab News on Monday that “Kerry is to visit Saudi Arabia for talks on regional security.”

“The US secretary of state will meet with foreign ministers of Gulf Cooperation Council countries to discuss shared regional priorities and security cooperation,” said Wight, while confirming the upcoming visit of Kerry.

Kerry’s talks with Saudi officials will focus on bilateral topics including issues related to the Saudi-led coalition, which is exerting efforts to restore peace in Yemen and to install the legitimate government in Saana. After Riyadh, Kerry will go to Paris to meet with other leaders including those from the Gulf countries to discuss security and other regional issues.

The US official also will take part in commemorations of the allied victory in World War II and meet with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius. The US is pushing for a “humanitarian pause” in the fighting in Yemen that would allow much-needed food, fuel and essential supplies to be delivered to that war-torn country.

According to the US State Department, Kerry will become the first sitting secretary of state to travel to Djibouti during this leg of his trip. There, he will meet with government officials regarding the evacuation of civilians from Yemen and also visit Camp Lemonnier, the US military base from which it coordinates its counterterror operations in the Horn of Africa.

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