United States approves $1.15 billion sale of tanks, other equipment to Saudi Arabia

The US State Department has approved the potential sale of more than 130 Abrams battle tanks, 20 armoured recovery vehicles and other equipment, worth about $1.15bn, to Saudi Arabia, the Pentagon said on Tuesday.

With this sale likely to go through, the United States has put Saudi Arabia in a strong position. Chris MurphyChris MurphyEx-CIA chief: Trump comment would get someone else a ride in “police wagon” U.S. approves.15B military sale to Saudi Arabia Dem senator: Trump made “assassination threat” MORE (D-Conn.) and Rand PaulRand PaulUS approves.15B military sale to Saudi Arabia Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party’s misguided foreign policy Congress asleep at the wheel on USA operations in Libya MORE (R-Ky.) unsuccessfully pushed a Senate resolution that would have limited weapons sales to Saudi Arabia. The announcement comes at a time when there were reports of civilian deaths caused by renewed Saudi-led airstrikes in Yemen.

The agreement includes the possible sale of armored recovery vehicles, smoke grenade launchers, and a host of other hardware. The proposed sale won’t alter the “basic military balance in the region”, the USA agency said.

Congress has 30 days to block the sale, though is unlikely to do so.

“The addition of these tanks and recovery vehicles to the (Saudi military’s) inventory will enhance Saudi Arabia’s ability to support its soldiers in the field and to defend the Kingdom’s borders”.

Medics said nine civilians were killed in a strike on a potato chip factory in the Nahda district of the capital.

The Pentagon announcement made no mention of the conflict in Yemen, where the Saudi-led coalition intervened in March a year ago after Shiite Huthi rebels and allied forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh overran Sanaa.

While the Saudi coalition established air superiority over Yemen fairly early on, its ground forces appear to have suffered considerable casualties in the fighting, and have been unable to dislodge the Houthis from the northern and western parts of the country. The sale has a potential value of up to $1.15 billion, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a statement on its website on Tuesday.