The Trump administration has approved another $ 290 million guided bomb sale to Saudi Arabia, according to a statement to Congress released on Tuesday.
The State Department has approved the sale of 3,000 ammunition for the GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb I (SDB I) manufactured by Boeing and related equipment, according to a statement from the Defense Security Cooperation Agency.
The sale announced on Tuesday is in addition to a license that the Trump administration recently approved and would allow Raytheon to sell directly to Saudi Arabia 7,500 of its Paveway “smart” air-to-ground pumps for an estimated $ 478 million. .
The arms deal comes at a time when lawmakers on both sides are increasingly opposed to the sale of Saudi weapons amid thousands of civilians killed in the Saudi-led war in Yemen. Many lawmakers also reached their limit with the kingdom when a Saudi squad killed and dismembered journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
But President Trump
Donald TrumpTrump calls for an end to “religious persecution worldwide” on the 850th anniversary of Thomas Becket’s death. The interview with Michael Cohen raises questions after he mentions friends from prison ‘Tony Meatballs and Big Minty’ Ocasio-Cortez against Democrats and Republicans who opposed $ 1,000 direct payments MORE has made arms sales to the kingdom an integral part of its foreign policy, arguing that they are necessary to contain Iran and increase jobs at US arms manufacturers.
Last year, the Trump administration promoted an “emergency” $ 8.1 billion arms sale to the Saudis that lawmakers had been blocking through an informal process. Congress ended up passing bipartisan resolutions to block these sales, but Trump vetoed them.
Democrats accused the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
Mike PompeoBiden calls for the modernization of the United States’ defenses following Trump’s legacy: A lasting contempt for the truth? Nothing becomes Donald Trump’s presidency as he leaves it MOREThe invocation of emergency authorities to unduly circumvent Congressional supervisory authorities. The State Department’s inspector general later found that Pompeo had the authority to promote sales, but blamed him for failing to ensure that American weapons were not used against civilian populations.
For the deal announced on Tuesday, the government argued in the statement that the sale “would support US foreign policy and national security objectives, helping to improve the security of a friendly country that remains an important force for stability. politics and economic growth in the Middle East. “
“The proposed sale will improve Saudi Arabia’s ability to cope with current and future threats by increasing its stocks of long-range precision air-to-ground ammunition. The size and accuracy of SDB I allows for effective ammunition with less collateral damage, ”states the warning.
Tuesday’s warning starts a 30-day clock during which lawmakers can block the sale if they want to.
This puts the deadline at the start of the Biden government, which can also suspend the sale if it wants to. President-elect Joe Biden
Joe BidenMichigan Mayor draws criticism with Facebook posts suggesting rebellion: Trump report names Roisman interim SEC president, Biden appointed to the Interior discusses environmental injustice with tribal leaders MORE promised to review the US relationship with Saudi Arabia.
The Trump administration has advanced billions of dollars in arms sales in the last days of Trump’s term, including a $ 23 billion arms package for the United Arab Emirates.
In addition to the sale of Saudi weapons, the Trump administration announced approvals on Tuesday for sales to Kuwait and Egypt.
For Kuwait, the government approved the sale of eight $ 4 billion AH-64E Apache helicopters and $ 200 million in spare parts to upgrade its Patriot missile system.
Egypt was approved to purchase a $ 104 million missile countermeasure system for its presidential aircraft and 20 $ 65.6 million military aircraft targeting capsules.