(Washington) The United States announced on Tuesday that it has approved the sale to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates of Patriot and THAAD missile defense systems for more than $5 billion.
Posted at 6:00 p.m.
The US State Department, which is responsible for foreign affairs, said in a statement that it had notified Congress of its intention to sell Riyadh 300 Patriot missiles and their equipment for $3.05 billion.
The sale will allow the Saudi kingdom to “replenish its dwindling stocks of Patriot missiles”, used to defend the territory against drone attacks carried out from neighboring Yemen by Houthi rebels, the State Department said.
Faced with one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, Yemen is devastated by a conflict that pits government forces, backed by a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia since 2015, against Houthi rebels backed by Iran, the rival of Riyadh in the region.
Washington has also approved the sale to the United Arab Emirates, partners of Saudi Arabia in the conflict in Yemen, of two anti-missile systems THAAD (Theater High Altitude Area Defense), with 96 missiles, for a total amount of 2.25 billion of dollars.
Patriot missiles are manufactured by the American group Raytheon, while THAAD systems are produced by Lockheed Martin.
These arms sales were revealed when the UN announced the extension in extremis for “two more months” of the truce in force in Yemen, the poorest country on the Arabian Peninsula, with the hope of “intensifying” negotiations to achieve a more “lasting” peace in this country ravaged by nearly eight years of war.