President Joe Biden agreed to lift limits on the sale of offensive weapons to Saudi Arabia, reversing a policy imposed early in his term as he looks to boost ties with a key partner and counter Iran, Report informs referring to Bloomberg.
Biden had ordered the pause on the sale of precision-guided munitions and other weapons to pressure Riyadh to wind down its war against Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Saudis met their end of the bargain, according to a senior US official who asked not to be identified discussing a decision that hasn’t been publicly announced.
US priorities in the region have also been upended since Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7 and the Iran-backed Houthis roiled the shipping world with attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea. Tensions spiked even more after the recent assassination of a top Hamas leader in Tehran, and officials say Iran may strike Israel at any time.
There was no word yet on what weapons might now go ahead. But the previous pause included a hold on issuing a formal commercial license to RTX Corp., previously known as Raytheon, to sell Saudi Arabia 7,500 precision-guided, air-to-ground munitions valued at $478 million.
