To kill more Yemenis, Saudi Arabia buys US weapons

YemenExtra

SH.A.

Saudi Arabia has agreed to buy precision-guided munitions from US defense companies worth about $ 7 billion in a deal that may be contested by some US lawmakers, well-informed sources said on Thursday (November 23rd).

The two companies, Raytheon and Boeing, were selected in a deal to buy $ 110 billion worth of weapons in conjunction with President Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia in May, the two sources said, while the two companies declined to comment on arms sales.

Arms sales to Saudi Arabia and other member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are a controversial issue within the US Congress, which must approve such deals. The US State Department has yet to formally inform Congress of the precision-guided munitions deal.

“We do not comment to confirm or deny sales until Congress is formally notified,” a State Department official said, adding that the US government would take into account factors such as regional balance, human rights and impact on the US defense industry base.