WASHINGTON – The Biden administration is reviewing several arms sales to Gulf Arab states approved by the Trump administration, including tens of billions of dollars worth of advanced fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates and precision ammunition to Saudi Arabia.
A State Department official speaking in the background said Wednesday that the government is temporarily halting some of the arms sales and transfers, calling the move a routine action typical of presidential transitions.
But it has attracted unusual attention because the arms deals with the Gulf Arab nations, which were approved by the Trump administration in recent months, were the subject of intense political debate even before the review. Some Democrats on Wednesday expressed their hope that the sale would be canceled, even though the government underestimated the review.
Democrats in Congress strongly opposed the sale due to dislike of the Saudi and Emirati role in Yemen’s grueling civil war, which caused great civil suffering, but they could not attract enough Republican support to block the deal in Congress in December. not. Even before his inauguration, many Democrats put pressure on President Biden to halt sales.
The deals in question include the sale of $ 23 billion to the Emirates of 50 F-35 fighters and 18 Reaper drones, which President Donald J. Trump approved in the fall as an incentive for the Emirates to establish diplomatic relations with Israel. normalize as part of the “Abraham chord,” one of Mr. Trump’s proudest achievements.
At the end of December, the State Department approved the sale of $ 478 million in precision-guided ammunition to Saudi Arabia because of strong opposition from Democrats, who said the bombs would definitely kill innocent civilians in Yemen. Trump officials called the deal essential to supporting the Saudis in their fight against Iranian-backed Houthis. Officials did not provide full details of all the agreements under discussion, but Mr. Trump has approved the sale of billions of dollars to the Saudi.
A senior administration official said the review did not include a freeze on sales under the Emirati agreement. A congressman familiar with the review said the Saudi arms shipments would be interrupted during the review.
The news comes as many Democrats in Congress are calling for a reassessment of the United States’ relationship with the Gulf states, especially Saudi Arabia. Mr. Trump and Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and senior adviser, worked in real cooperation with Saudi Arabia and the Emirates. But Democrats say the war in Yemen and human rights issues, including the assassination of Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi in October 2018, require a more skeptical relationship.
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken briefed State Department journalists on his first full day of work, saying the review is customary.
“As far as arms sales are concerned, it is typically at the beginning of an administration to review any pending sales to make sure that those being considered are something that promotes our strategic objectives and promotes our foreign policy,” he said. Blinken said.
In a statement posted on Twitter through his embassy, the Emirate Ambassador to Washington, Yousef al-Otaiba, also emphasized the routine nature of the review.
The New Washington
“As in previous transitions, the UAE has expected a review of the current policy by the new government,” he said. Otaiba said.
But Mr. Otaiba also argued a more detailed case for the agreement, arguing, among other things, that it would “enable the United Arab Emirates to take more of the local burden on collective security and free US assets from other global challenges, a. long-term dual American priority. “
Yet some Congressional Democrats said Wednesday that the arms deal should be canceled – or even likely – to be.
“This is the end of American ambivalence in the face of unscrupulous human suffering in Yemen,” said California Representative Ro Khanna, a member of the Armed Forces Committee and an outspoken critic of arms sales to the Gulf states. said on Twitter. “We will no longer calm brutal dictators for political or personal gain. Outstanding news from Biden. ”
Connecticut Democrat Senator Christopher S. Murphy agreed.
“The weapons we sold to Saudi Arabia and the UAE were used to kill schoolchildren, were transferred to extremist militias and fueled a dangerous arms race in the Middle East. This is the right step, “he said. posted on Twitter. “The time has come to restore our relationship with the Gulf Partners.”
The Emirates joined forces with Saudi Arabia for years to fight the Houthis in Yemen, but withdrew their forces in late 2019.
Dennis Ross, who has run the Middle East affairs for four presidents, said the review is not surprising and typical of an incoming government. But he said the Biden government was keen to show “that it takes the sale of advanced weapons seriously and wants to consider the implications of such sales, especially in a place like the Middle East.”
Mr. Ross predicted that the government would eventually ease the deal with the Emirates, in part because Mr. Biden supports the diplomatic agreement with Israel on which the aircraft are conditioned.
Mr Blinken called the Abraham agreement on Wednesday “a very positive development” and said the Biden government hoped to build on it. But he said he wanted to review the deals.
“We also try to make sure we have a full understanding of the commitments that can be made to secure those agreements,” he said. Blinken said. “And that’s something we’re looking at right now.”
One dual concern about the sale of the F-35, America’s most advanced fighter jet, was that it could threaten Israel’s military superiority in the Middle East. Under federal law, the United States must ensure that Israel maintains a “qualitative military advantage” over its neighbors. Trump officials have insisted that the high-tech aircraft do not interfere with the target, but that they do not publicly provide details that support their claim.
“The disruption of precision ammunition for the Saudis could be more of an explanation,” Ross added. “The pause can be linked to statements made during the campaign about the fact that they no longer support the Saudis militarily in their campaign in Yemen.”
Mr. Blinken also said during his confirmation hearing in the Senate last week that the United States would end its years of support for the Saudi campaign in Yemen.
But Mr. Ross noted that the State Department condemned a weekend rocket or drone attack on Riyadh that was allegedly launched by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, whose takeover of the Yemeni capital in 2015 Saudi Arabia and the Emirates in the country’s civil war moved in.
The statement said the United States would “help our partner Saudi Arabia defend itself against attacks on its territory and bring to justice those who seek to undermine stability.”
Reporting was contributed by Catie Edmondson, Lara Jakes, Mark Mazzetti and Eric Schmitt.