The United States announced on Monday that it will resume sales of offensive weapons to Saudi Arabia, ending a suspension that had been in place for several years due to the kingdom’s violent actions in Yemen.
As Saudi Arabia’s role becomes increasingly important to the United States with the Gaza war now in its 10th month, the State Department confirmed that it will proceed with arms sales “in regular order with appropriate congressional notification and consultation.”
“Saudi Arabia has remained a close strategic partner of the United States, and we look forward to enhancing that partnership,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.
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When President Joe Biden assumed office in 2021, he promised a new approach to Saudi Arabia, focusing on human rights. He quickly declared that his administration would restrict arms sales to “defensive” weapons for the longstanding US ally.
This decision followed reports estimating that thousands of civilians, including children, had been killed in Saudi-led airstrikes in Yemen, part of a campaign against Iranian-backed Huthi rebels who control much of the country.
However, geopolitical dynamics have shifted significantly since then. In early 2022, the United Nations, with backing from the United States, successfully brokered a truce that has largely remained in place.
Since the truce, “there has not been a single Saudi airstrike into Yemen and cross-border fire from Yemen into Saudi Arabia has largely stopped,” Patel said.
“The Saudis since that time have met their end of the deal, and we are prepared to meet ours,” Patel said.
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