The United States is expected to lift a ban on the sale of offensive weapons to Saudi Arabia, potentially in the coming weeks, the Financial Times reported on Sunday.
The White House and Saudi Arabia’s government communication office did not immediately respond to a request for comment © Mena Today
The United States is expected to lift a ban on the sale of offensive weapons to Saudi Arabia, potentially in the coming weeks, the Financial Times reported on Sunday.
Washington has already signaled to Saudi Arabia that it was prepared to lift the ban, the newspaper reported, citing a person familiar with the matter.
Soon after taking office in 2021, Biden adopted a tougher stance over Saudi Arabia's campaign against the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen, which has inflicted heavy civilian casualties, and over Riyadh's human rights record, in particular the 2018 killing of Washington Post journalist and political opponent Jamal Khashoggi.
Saudi Arabia, the biggest U.S. arms customer, has chafed under those restrictions, which froze the kind of weapons sales that previous U.S. administrations had provided for decades.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday said the U.S. and Saudi Arabia were very close to concluding a set of agreements on nuclear energy, security and defense cooperation, the bilateral component of a wider normalisation deal with Riyadh and Israel.
However, lifting the ban on offensive weapons sales were not directly linked to these talks, FT said.
The White House and Saudi Arabia’s government communication office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Reporting by Chandni Shah
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he didn't rule out further strikes on Hamas leaders "wherever they are" as the heads of Arab and Islamic states held a summit to show support for Qatar after Israel's attack on the Gulf state last week.
United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan arrived in Qatar on Wednesday, UAE state news agency WAM reported, in a show of solidarity a day after Israel launched an airstrike targeting Hamas officials in Doha.
Saudi Arabia announced on Sunday a new package of humanitarian and reconstruction projects in Syria, reinforcing its support for the transitional government that took power following the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.
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