Washington Approves Weapons Sale to Riyadh Following Iran-Saudi Drills

by | Oct 28, 2024

Washington Approves Weapons Sale to Riyadh Following Iran-Saudi Drills

by | Oct 28, 2024

image

Last week, Saudi Arabia conducted drills with its rival Iran in the Sea of Oman in a sign of warming relations between the regional powers. Following the announcement, Washington approved a massive arms sale to the Gulf Kingdom. 

On Thursday, the US announced it had approved the sale of 1,000 Tube-launched, Optically Tracked, Wire-guided (TOW) missiles to Saudi Arabia. Raytheon will be the contractor for the $440 million deal. 

Washington’s press release about the deal came after Saudi Arabia said it conducted joint naval exercises with Iran on Wednesday. “The Royal Saudi Naval Forces had recently concluded a joint naval exercise with the Iranian Naval Forces alongside other countries in the Sea of Oman,” a Saudi military official told AFP. 

While the drills signal a strengthening relationship between Gulf powers, Washington providing a huge shipment of weapons to Riyadh as it also backs Israeli strikes on Iran could scuttle the steps towards a more stable Saudi-Iranian relationship. 

The White House took a similar approach to the South China Sea. In July, China and the Philippines agreed to a deal that saw tensions around the Second Thomas Shoal decrease. However, the Biden administration then sent $500 million in military aid to Manila. Shortly thereafter, the Philippines and Chinese vessels began colliding near another reef in the South China Sea.  

Riyadh and Tehran have been building their relationship since Beijing brokered a landmark peace deal between the two countries last year. President Joe Biden has sought to take the Middle East in a different direction, bringing Saudi Arabia into a coalition with Israel aimed at Iran. 

The announcement of the massive arms deal for Raytheon comes after the arms merchant agreed to pay nearly $1 billion in penalties after overbilling the Pentagon and bribing foreign governments. 

Kyle Anzalone

Kyle Anzalone

Kyle Anzalone is news editor of the Libertarian Institute, opinion editor of Antiwar.com and co-host of Conflicts of Interest with Will Porter and Connor Freeman.

View all posts

Our Books

Shop books published by the Libertarian Institute.

libetarian institute longsleeve shirt

Support via Amazon Smile

Our Books

libertarian inst books

Recent Articles

Recent

Putin, Trump Say They Are Ready for Talks

Putin, Trump Say They Are Ready for Talks

Russian President Vladimir Putin and President-Elect Donald Trump each said they were prepared to engage in talks following Trump's election victory.  At the Valdai forum on Thursday, the Russian leader said, "I take this opportunity to congratulate [Trump]," adding...

read more

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This