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Image posted, Reuters
The administration of US President Joe Biden has temporarily frozen arms sales to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia that had been approved by former President Donald Trump before leaving office.
A spokesman for the US State Department said the move was intended to give Biden’s team an opportunity to review the contracts.
The spokesperson added that it is “a routine administrative procedure in the event of any transfer of power, and shows the administration’s commitment to transparency and good governance.”
Trump had approved a $ 23 billion deal to sell the Abu Dhabi F-35s, after establishing diplomatic relations with Israel.
As for Democratic President Biden, during his election campaign, he expressed dissatisfaction with the Saudi-led war in Yemen.
The administration, which has been around for a week, has indicated that it plans to end support for the Saudi-led, UAE-backed offensive in Yemen, which is facing a humanitarian disaster.
The spokesperson for the US State Department explained that the temporary suspension of the arms deals is aimed at “ensuring that US arms sales meet our strategic goals of building stronger and better cooperative partners and having more security capabilities. “.
The UAE was supposed to become the first Arab country and the second country in the Middle East, after Israel, to acquire this type of aircraft, after Abu Dhabi agreed to normalize relations with Israel.
Any possible suspension of the agreement may raise questions about whether the UAE will continue the path of normalization with Israel, which is the main achievement that Trump can count on in managing the Middle East and foreign policy file.
Democratic lawmakers raised concerns about this deal to Biden, fearing it would lead to an arms race in the region, but failed in the Senate to block the sale while Trump was in office.
The package to the United Arab Emirates also included unarmed drones, while the United States prepared to sell large quantities of ammunition and smart bombs to Saudi Arabia.
Trump has openly supported arms sales on a commercial basis, saying the Saudis have been contributing jobs to Americans by buying from American manufacturers.
But the new Foreign Minister, Anthony Blinken, said during a hearing for his official approval by Congress that the Saudi attack on the Houthi rebels in Yemen, backed by Iran, contributed to the deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Yemen.
