WASHINGTON, March 26 (UPI) -- All political actors in Yemen are called on to play a constructive role in the country's transition process, a U.S. security official told the Yemeni president.
John Brennan, a counter-terrorism assistant to U.S. President Barack Obama, phoned Yemeni President Abdo Rabo Mansour Hadi to discuss the political transition process.
Hadi took control of the country after long-time President Ali Abdullah Saleh resigned early this year in part because of political pressure stemming from the so-called Arab Spring. Hadi had served as Saleh's deputy.
Brennan reiterated the U.S. support for Hadi's administration but stressed concern about political unity in Yemen.
"He noted that it is essential that all Yemeni political actors, especially those from the previous government, play a constructive role in the transition process, and he expressed concern over recent reports that some former government officials are being disruptive," a White House statement on the conversation read.
Saleh Basura, former minister of higher education, threatened to join the southern secessionist movement in Yemen because of what the independent Yemen Post described as a lack of dialogue in the country.
Yemen's national security is challenged by a separatist movement in the south, the presence of al-Qaida and a Shiite rebel group in the north of the country.
