In March 2015, Saudi Arabia and several Sunni allies launched a massive air campaign against Iran-aligned Shiite Houthi rebels who had overrun much of Yemen a year earlier. The United States gave its full support to this campaign, which aimed at rolling back rebel military gains in Yemen.

Washington’s Support for the Saudi Coalition in Yemen

Washington provided training and logistical and intelligence support to the Saudi-led coalition as well as selling billions of dollars in weapons to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the two main members of the anti-Houthi coalition.

In support of the Saudi-led war campaign, the administration of then-President Barack Obama signed off an arms sale worth $1.3 billion in precision-guided bombs and bomb parts to the Saudis and their allies.

US officials argued that American weapons, training and intelligence assistance would help the Saudis and their allies avoid causing more civilian casualties in Yemen. However actions proved otherwise.

Sharp Increase in Civilian Casualties in Yemen

Civilian casualties sharply increased in Yemen with the Saudi-led military intervention. According to an estimate from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project, an independent monitoring group, more than 127,000 people have been killed in the war, including 13,500 civilians in targeted attacks by the Saudi-led coalition.

In the first 18 months of the Saudi-led campaign against Houthi rebels, human rights groups linked US bombs to attacks on homes, residential buildings, factories, warehouses, a cultural center, an agricultural complex, a primary school and other non-military sites.

US Officials May be Held Accountable for War Crimes in Yemen

According to the New York Times, concerns are now rising among US officials that they could be held accountable for war crimes in Yemen due to their role in facilitating arms sales to Saudi Arabia and its allies.

Administration officials fear that they could be arrested while on trips overseas for war crimes for ignoring the harm caused by the US weapons in Yemen.

In 2016, the legal office of the State Department in the Obama administration issued a memo warning that US officials, including the secretary of state, could be charged with war crimes for their role in arming the Saudi coalition.

Fearing accountability, the Obama administration acted on the warning and took a tougher line on the delivery of weapons to Saudi Arabia. In December of this year, Obama blocked a shipment of precision-guided bombs that he had agreed to sell to the Saudis.

Trump Resumed Obama’s Weapons Shipments to Gulf Allies

A few months after Obama left the White House, his successor Donald Trump, however, delivered the bombs his predecessor had halted. The Trump administration even sought to advance more arms sales in billions of dollars to its Gulf allies, but the shipments were blocked by the Congress for nearly two years.

As the deliveries of $8.1 billion of arms sales to members of the Saudi-led coalition were blocked pending congressional approval, the Trump administration came up with a new strategy to circumvent the Congress by declaring an emergency over Iran, which prompted a review by the inspector general.

Since April 2019, Trump has used his veto power to prevent lawmakers from withdrawing US military support and weapons sales to Saudi Arabia and its allies.

The Laws of War Still Apply

Under the laws of war, all countries are prohibited from approving arms sales in cases where these weapons can be used to commit attacks against civilians. As this is the case in the Yemen war, the possibility of holding American officials accountable for war crimes looks high.

Lawsuits can be filed against US officials for alleged war crimes in Yemen before courts in sovereign countries. The charges can also be brought in an international tribunal if one were set up to investigate atrocities in the Yemen war.

Earlier this month, the UN issued a report on atrocities in Yemen and asked the Security Council to bring actions by all parties in the conflict to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for possible war crimes prosecution.

The ICC Investigation into the US, UK and France

The ICC has already authorized an investigation into alleged war crimes committed by the US and other forces in Afghanistan in March, a move that prompted the Trump administration to blacklist ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and her top aide.

In September 2019, a panel of UN investigators concluded in a report that the US, along with Britain and France, were likely complicit in war crimes in Yemen because of continued weapons sales and intelligence support to the Saudis and their allies.

The report said third states that have influence on Yemen’s warring parties – including the US, Britain, France and Iran – “may be held responsible for providing aid or assistance for the commission of international law violations”.

L'articolo American Officials on the Hook for War Crimes in Yemen proviene da InsideOver.

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said his country is willing to normalize ties with Saudi Arabia aimed at creating stability in the Middle East and ending the bloodshed in Yemen.

“From Iran’s points of view, there is no problem in developing ties with neighbors and resuming relations with Saudi Arabia,” Rouhani made the statement in a meeting with Omani Foreign Minister Yousef Bin Alawi in Tehran as Xinhua quoted.

Rouhani also emphasised the Yemen War, where Saudi and Iran were involved. He added there should be an effort to end the conflict sooner. In 2015, Saudi launched a military intervention in Yemen to crush Iran-backed Houthi rebels who expelled internationally-recognized leader Abd Mansour Hadi, who fled to Saudi.

The background of the Iran-Saudi rivalry

Saudi and Iran are leading powers of the two largest sects of Islam; the former is seen as the world’s leading Sunni Muslim nation, while the Iatter is predominantly Shia Muslim.

The 1979 Iran revolution came as a challenge to Saudi, which boasted as the birthplace of Islam, given Iran’s theocracy system and its aim to export such a system elsewhere.

Iran was close to the West during the Shah rule. However, the revolution turned Iran into one of the US adversaries, while Saudi is one of the US closest allies.

Saudi and Iran have never been engaged in a direct fight. However, both are competing to exert their influence in the Middle East. They are also among the world’s largest energy producers due to their oil and natural gas’ abundant reserve.

Yemen is a battleground for Saudi and Iran. Riyadh backs Mansour Hadi while Tehran supports Houthi rebels to overthrow him.  The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) report revealed that, as of November 2018, the Saudi Arabia-led coalition had killed 6,872 civilians in 2018 and wounded 10,768.

Tensions continued when Saudi and the US accused Iran of masterminding the drone attacks targeting Saudi’s oil facility on September 14. Riyadh claimed Tehran’s role in the incident based on the drones’ and missiles’ debris. However, it was uncertain whether those weapons appeared to be launched from Iran.

Iran-Saudi improved ties for the peaceful Middle East and Yemen

Rouhani urged Saudi to end its military operation in Yemen, adding that by withdrawing troops from Yemen, Saudi’s security would be guaranteed.

“The security of Saudi Arabia will be guaranteed with the termination of aggression in Yemen, rather than by inviting foreigners,” Rouhani told the UN General Assembly.

Just a few weeks after the drone attack, Iran and Saudi were reportedly in touch despite Riyadh’s denial, as Voanews reported.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani welcomed a dialogue with Saudi as it could ease the tension in the world’s most volatile region.

“Tehran welcomes any negotiations with Saudi Arabia … because talks with Riyadh can resolve many regional problems and issues,” Larijani told Aljazeera as Voanews reported.

Saudi’s minister of state for foreign affairs, Adel Jubeir, denied Tehran’s claim via Twitter, stating: “it is not correct that Saudi Arabia sent a message to Tehran, but that the leader of a friendly country sought to calm the situation and Riyadh told him that its position has always been to seek security and stability in the region.”

Saudi has held talks with Yemen’s Houthi rebels via video conference mediated by Oman over the past two months, Gamal Amer, a negotiator representing the Houthis, confirmed as AlJazeera reported.

A senior Saudi official admitted that Riyadh had opened a dialogue with the Houthis since 2016 and would continue it to create peace in Yemen, as AFP reported.

“We have had an open channel with the Houthis since 2016. We are continuing these communications to support peace in Yemen,” the official told reporters.

The official did not elaborate on the development of the talks. The Houthi rebels did not also comment on the dialogue. However, rebels also held a meeting with Washington as Assistant Secretary of Near Eastern Affairs David Schenker confirmed during his Saudi visit in September.

Anti-Iran alliance is crumbling

Saudi and its allies have started a dialogue with Iran (as the United Arab Emirates held maritime talks with Tehran), showing that the anti-Iran alliance is waning and dialogue with Tehran is necessary to create the peaceful Middle East.

The anti-Iran alliance is not just faltering; it’s crumbling. MBZ (Mohammed bin Zayed, Emirati’s crown prince) has struck his deal with Iran; MBS (Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi’s crown prince is not far behind,” Martin Indyk, a distinguished fellow at Council on Foreign Relations and a former senior diplomat, tweeted as The New York Times quoted.

Despite the ongoing tension involving Iran and the US following the latter’s exit from the Iran nuclear deal, the reconciliation between Tehran and Riyadh is vital for the peaceful Middle East and an end to a humanitarian crisis in Yemen.

L'articolo Will the Improved Iran-Saudi Ties Stabilize the Middle East and End The Yemen War? proviene da InsideOver.

After over four years of fighting in Yemen, the central conflict is drawing to a close with peace talks ongoing. However the prospect of a peace accord leaves the question of how Houthi rebels and their Supreme Political Council will play into the future of Yemen’s government. Yemen is currently split amongst several groups, each vying for control of the nation, but none are able to secure more than a section of the country.

Unification Peace

The Supreme Transitional Council, a separatist movement, recently signed a power-sharing agreement with the Yemen government in a mediated negotiation in Riyadh. Under this deal, armies from each side would be placed under the control of the defence and interior ministries while returning power over Aden to the internationally-recognized government. The STC and the government have been allied against the Houthis since August and an agreement between the STC and President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s office would give them more power. They not only have to contend with the rebel faction, but also Ansar al-Sharia and Al-Qaeda, which control a large swatch of eastern part of the state.

Critically, the agreement calls for the formation of a government led by 24 ministers equally comprised of both the STC and Hadi’s government. Saudi Arabia’s military coalition will help enforce the deal. Although both sides have engaged each other on the battlefield, they have a common enemy in the Houthi faction. 

Just as Yemen is divided into factions, so are the alliances as well. Like the STC and Sana’a government, these can be equally as complicated. Although both Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been arming Yemeni militias against Iran-backed Houthis, in the larger picture, they each support different sides. While Riyadh puts it weight behind the recognized government, Abu Dhabi funds the STC. 

Ending the Rebellion

Houthi rebels, propped up by funding and weapons from Tehran, began the Yemen Civil War by seizing the capital of Sana’a. After overthrowing Hadi’s government, the militia forged its way south, running Hadi out of the country. Now that the separatist movement and official government have signed a peace agreement, the Houthis faction is the last remaining piece to the Yemen puzzle. 

In September, the Houthis offered to halt attacks on Saudi Arabia after claiming responsibility for drone strikes on Saudi Aramaco oil facilities. Officials from Riyadh and the Houthi government began discussions in Oman. For Saudi Arabia, the opportunity to end the fighting represents a victory on two fronts. First, it would help stabilize the region and be considered a win over Iran. Houthis were emboldened by support from Tehran and Riyadh views the Yemen Civil War as a proxy war with its longtime adversary. By bringing it to an end, Saudi Arabia would remove the most dangerous threat Iran poses to the kingdom. Iran’s proxy network is far-reaching, but the Houthi fighters have proven most-capable of attacking Saudi Arabia directly. 

Secondly, a peace deal between the Saudis and Houthis would provide Riyadh with a reasonable exit from the Yemen conflict. Once the STC and Hadi’s government implement their power-sharing deal, the Houthis are one of the last militias left for Saudi Arabia to be tied to. The kingdom’s military action in Yemen and its involvement with supplying Hadi’s forces has turned the international community against Riyadh and its suppliers. Protests and legislative action in western states have combined to pressure both Saudi Arabia and the UAE to end their involvement. 

The peace discussion in Oman includes concessions such as reopening the Sana’a airport, removing missile and drone equipment, and a security zone along the Saudi – Yemen border. 

Momentum

Amidst Saudi discussions with Houthis via Oman, the framework for a new Yemeni government is beginning to take shape. As the agreement between the STC and Hadi administration includes provisions for 12 ministers from both sides, there seems to be little room left for the Houthis. However, Anwar Gargash, minister of state for foreign affairs in the United Arab Emirates, said it is important to use the momentum from the STC peace deal to fuel further political solutions. Ultimately, Houthis are part of Yemen just as much as those fighting for Hadi or the STC and any political deal must take the rebel faction into consideration.

“Such an agreement must take account of the legitimate aspirations of all parts of Yemeni society. That includes the Houthis,” Gargash said. “Houthis militias have wrecked havoc on the country, but they are a part of Yemeni society and they will have a role in its future.” 

The Houthis reportedly are asking for a power-sharing agreement, likely one similar to the STC’s, according to the International Crisis Group. However because the Houthis have not yet engaged either the STC or Hadi’s government yet, only Saudi Arabia, it is unlikely to happen in the near future. A peace deal with Riyadh would possibly lend some weight to the Houthis at the negotiating table. Since the Saudis have credibility with the Hadi administration, they could pressure Hadi’s government to include the Houthis in some form, perhaps with 12 ministers of their own.

Gargash also emphasized the importance of bringing other international players, including Iran, to the table. Such talks could happen after a peaceful government is restored to Sana’a. 

“Gulf states need to be at the negotiating table,” he said. “This moment requires a renewed, robust and realistic diplomatic effort to reach a more sustainable agreement.” 

The recent developments of peace talks between warring factions in Yemen signal there is hope for peace, but more than that, they indicate that power players behind the militias are committed to ending the calamity. Going forward from the STC – Hadi agreement, other actors such as the Houthis will follow suit in securing peace if regional governments act in good faith at pursuing it.

L'articolo What Comes Next for Houthis? proviene da InsideOver.

American weapons are still finding their way to Yemen, even following both international backlash and bipartisan condemnation in the US Congress. Recent footage obtained and published by CNN showed shipments being delivered to the port of Aden, Yemen. Heavy armoured vehicles can be seen driving from the port through the streets of Aden in the video. 

Illegal Transfers

Both the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia are allegedly passing shipments of US equipment and weapons through to militias in Yemen, not arming their troops in the area. CNN verified that one such shipment was delivered by the Saudi vessel Bahri Hofuf last week after it left Jeddah. From there, it made port in Sudan. Then it turned off its transponder and “went dark,” falling off the radar, before arriving in Aden.

US law forbids the transfer of military equipment and technology by the purchaser, but last week’s occurrence is not the first time CNN has caught equipment making its way to regional militias. In February, the network published an in-depth investigative report that the UAE and Saudi Arabia were passing along weapons, including mine-resistant ambush-protected (MRAP) vehicles. At the time, US Democratic Senator Chris Murphy called the investigation a “bombshell” and had hoped it would be the final straw for American support in the Yemen war. 

Military officials disagreed, however, citing the threat to American lives in the region if it were to end its support of Saudi Arabia, according to Gen. Joseph Votel, top US commander for the Middle East. Despite the evidence that American allies were violating the terms of their arms agreements, US President Donald Trump insisted they could not simply be torn apart because “I don’t want to lose all of that investment being made into our country,” he said. 

Congressmen made several attempts in the wake of the CNN report and murder of Jamal Khashoggi to limit US support of the UAE and Saudi Arabia, but they were consistently vetoed by Trump. Furthermore, responsibility for the shipments to Yemen in violation of US law is continuously denied. 

Denials

“Oshkosh Defense strictly follows all US laws and regulations relating to export control,” the MRAP manufacturer told CNN. 

After a similar incident was caught unfolding by CNN in October,  Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Uriah L. Orland stated that he could not comment on any investigations by the US military and also insisted that American MRAP usage in Yemen is not forbidden. While that statement may be technically true, the Arms Export Control Act expressly prohibits customers from transferring American military technology to other state or non-state actors.

Saudi Col. Turki Al-Maliki also denied legal transgressions, stating “all military equipment is used by Saudi forces under terms and conditions of Foreign Military Sales adopted by the US government and in pursuance of the Arms Export Control Act.” Likewise, a senior UAE official said “in no uncertain terms that we violate end-user agreements in any manner.” 

In its defense, the UAE argued that the Giants Brigade which was filmed taking possession of MRAPs is a “part of Yemeni forces” and therefore part of a coalition which has “collective possession” of the military equipment. The US Department of Defense viewed the situation differently and said the UAE did not have permission to transfer weaponry to third parties.

“The United States has not authorized the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates to re-transfer any equipment to parties inside Yemen,” said Johnny Michael, Pentagon spokesman.

Turning the Tide

A 2014 deal with the UAE contained $2.5 billion for 4,500 MRAPs, which now appear to be falling into the wrong hands. The Giants Brigade which used to fight on the side of the government, has now seemingly switched to fighting against it. The Abu Abbas Brigade, an al-Qaeda linked militia, has also managed to obtain some of the vehicles after the group joined the Yemeni army. 

For Yemen militias, US weapons are a form of currency to sway local support in their favor. Militants are just as prone to human nature as everybody else and it is natural to want to be on the winning team. 

“There are lethal and powerful weapons that the militias were using against the people. American weaponry is deadly. If the militias or others have them, they may be the winning side,” said Hussein Mohammed Talbi, Yemeni National Army soldier. 

In some cases, American MRAPs have been found abandoned on roadsides and CNN reporters were even able to enter them. The leak of US equipment to militias in Yemen poses a significant risk beyond the immediate conflict. Improvised explosive devices (IEDs) are the largest killer of American and allied forces in the Middle East. MRAPs help shield soldiers from them, but if the technology falls into the wrong hands, it could be reverse-engineered, limiting its effectiveness in future battles. 

Several congressional sources told CNN that MRAP deliveries to the UAE are now delayed pending a Pentagon investigation. Furthermore, the US House Foreign Affairs Committee requested an urgent meeting with both Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Mark Esper in a press release dated Oct. 28.

L'articolo Yemeni Militias Continue to Receive US Military Equipment  proviene da InsideOver.

Speculation is rife on the turn the showdown between the US and Iran will take in the coming days after the Islamic Republic’s ambassador in Baghdad threatened that his country would attack US troops in Iraq.

Iraj Masjedi said Iran would attack US troops in Iraq, if the Islamic Republic came under attack by the US.

“We do not want to go to war with the US,” Masjedi said. “War will serve nobody’s interests,” he added in on September 27 in an interview with the Amman-based Iraqi channel, Dijlah TV.

His ultimatum came only hours after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani claimed that the US had sent a message to European leaders that it was willing to lift all sanctions on Iran.

The Iranian leader, who was returning home from New York where he attended the 74th United Nations General Assembly meetings, added that he had rejected talks with Washington while punitive US sanctions were intact.

Germany, Britain, and France, he said, had insisted on a joint meeting with US officials.

“The German chancellor, the prime minister of Britain and the president of France were in New York and all insisted that this meeting take place and America says that it will lift the sanctions,” Rouhani said, according to his official website. “It was up for debate what sanctions will be lifted and they (the US) had said clearly that we will lift all sanctions.”

Rouhani claimed that France and Britain prodded him to meet US President Donald Trump. French President Emmanuel Macron, he said, warned that this would be a lost opportunity if he did not.

Nevertheless, Trump said on the same day that he had rejected Iran’s request to lift sanctions.

“Iran wanted me to lift the sanctions imposed on them to meet. I said, of course, NO!” Mr Trump wrote on Twitter.

Nobody knows whether the US had proposed to lift the sanctions it imposed on Iran or the Iranian president was making this up.

However, Rouhani’s claims come at a time his nation, which has military presence in four Arab countries, seems to be emboldened into more action to press the US to end the sanctions or at least reduce their intensity, analysts say.

This is especially true after the US and the international community had failed to bring Iran to account for its September 14 attack on two oil facilities in eastern Saudi Arabia.

Iran insists that the Houthi militia of Yemen perpetrated the attacks in a desperate attempt to shrug off accusations in this regard.

This does nothing to prove the Islamic Republic innocent because the Houthis are an Iranian proxy after all, analysts say.

Masjedi said his country would respond to any aggression against it.

“We have an endless list of self-defence options,” the Iranian diplomat said.

He called for kicking US troops out of the region. This leaves the door open to all possibilities in the coming days.

Fearing no consequences and frustrated with the effects of the US economic sanctions on Iran, the country’s mullahs have a free hand to try and strike at either the US or its allies in the region.

This is so far happening through Iran’s proxies, namely the Lebanese Hezbollah movement, and the Houthis of Yemen.

The Houthis are stepping up their attacks on Saudi Arabia, claiming to have taken 2,000 Saudi troops hostage during a September 27 operation in northern Yemen, near the restive country’s border with Saudi Arabia.

Iran may also strike at other US regional allies, which explains the high state of alert within Israel and regional fears that the Islamic Republic can hit in the coming days wherever nobody expects, including in countries that have not come under attack before.

L'articolo Will Iran Attack US Troops In Iraq? proviene da InsideOver.

The southern separatists who have seized control of Yemen’s port city of Aden will use upcoming crisis talks to push for an independence referendum and a role in the country’s UN-led peace process, said the group’s envoy Sulaiman Al-Khader.

Speaking with Inside Over, Al-Khader, the UN representative for the Southern Transitional Council (STC), said emergency talks requested this week by Saudi Arabia offered his group a chance to push for greater southern autonomy and, ultimately, independence.

“We welcome the talks in Saudi Arabia and will take part, as de-escalation is a priority right now. But moving forward, the STC must get a seat at the table in the United Nations-led peace process, from which it has so far been sidelined,” Al-Khader said in an interview.

“Bringing the STC into the process is the only way to bring peace to Yemen.”

Southern separatists, supported by coalition member the United Arab Emirates, effectively took control of Aden, the temporary seat of Yemen’s Saudi-backed government, this past weekend by seizing government military bases and the presidential palace.

The fighting killed up to 40 people and wounded 260 others, the UN says. But the International Committee for the Red Cross said this week that clinics in Aden had counted “scores dead” and hundreds wounded from the clashes.

The US-backed, Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015 against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels who ousted President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi from power in the capital, Sanaa, in late 2014. Hadi’s government relocated to Aden.

The STC’s Security Belt and other armed southern groups are integral to Riyadh’s coalition, but the war has revived old wounds between north and south Yemen, which were separate countries until unification in 1990.

A peace process led by UN envoy Martin Griffiths has focused on Hadi’s government, the Houthis, the coalition and fighting around the port city of Hodeidah — pushing the question of southern secession down the agenda.

Saudi Arabia has called for a summit over the Aden crisis without setting a date. Abu Dhabi has echoed Riyadh’s call for dialogue but stopped short of asking the southern forces that it trained, funds and arms to give up control.

“The southern people have been marginalized for too long and their patience has run out. There must be a referendum on independence so that the people of south Yemen can exercise their human right for self-determination,” said Al-Khader.

For Al-Khader, Hadi’s government needs to scrap its ties with the Islamist Islah party, which has been linked to a Houthi missile strike on southern forces that killed a prominent southern military leader earlier this month.

“Hadi runs a dysfunctional government of non-functioning institutions that do not provide basic services. It has also been hijacked by Islah and other forces that make it difficult for the STC to partner with,” Al-Khader said.

The deadly clashes exposed a rift between nominal allies that threatens to worsen a stalemated conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of lives and created what the UN calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

The war broke out in late 2014 when the Houthis, allied with forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, seized much of the country, including Sanaa. It escalated in March 2015 with a Saudi-UAE-led coalition air campaign against Houthi rebels.

Al-Khader spoke with Inside Over outside UN headquarters in New York, where he was recently posted as the STC’s representative in a sign of the group’s growing appetite to win recognition on the world stage.

“We’re trying to return our south Yemeni flag, which used to hang outside UN headquarters,” Al-Khader said, referencing the independent socialist Soviet-backed state of South Yemen that existed until 1990.

“We have the most at stake, but the world hasn’t seen that yet. It’s our job to show that we will not be third class citizens in our own country under a Sanaa regime. We’ve tried that for the past three decades and seen little but war, marginalization, poverty and abysmal schools, hospitals and roads.”

STC officials say that between 80 and 90 percent of southerners want independence. Such levels of support may be exaggerated, but many analysts say the majority of the southern population could well vote to split.

The STC is supported by Independent Diplomat, an advisory group founded by former British government political officer Carne Ross that has assisted secessionists in Somaliland, Western Sahara and elsewhere.

L'articolo Yemen’s South Demands Role in UN Peace Process: Envoy proviene da InsideOver.

Saudi Arabia’s nuclear ambitions continue to inch closer to realization. The U.S. Department of Energy revealed this week that the Trump Administration had approved a total of seven permits pertaining to the transfer of nuclear expertise to the Middle Eastern kingdom. The ties between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Riyadh counterpart, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, have always raised eyebrows, but this time politicians from both parties are irked.

One reason is the timing of the permits, called 810 authorizations. The first was approved only two weeks following the murder of Washington Post journalist and U.S. resident Jamal Khashoggi. Following international outcries, Mohammed bin Salman eventually accepted responsibility for the killing which took place at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, but continues to insist it was an accident. Only a few months before that event last October, the crown prince was on a world tour including two weeks in the U.S. courting business magnates and politicians alike.

During a stop at the White House last March, Trump and the Mohammed bin Salman discussed a host of issues including Iran and human rights, but mostly the business relationship between the kingdom and U.S. weapons manufacturers. $400 billion worth of purchases was pledged by Saudi Arabia, a staggering number that Trump boasted about during a press gathering. The president made a point to associate the arms with benefits to the U.S. economy.

“We’re talking about over 40,000 jobs in the United States,” Trump said.

Whether that number is statistically accurate or not, there is no slowing down the flow of U.S. technology and expertise to Riyadh. Trump’s cozy business relationship with the kingdom has faced unprecedented scrutiny, not only on the suspicion of backdoor arrangements, but also due to both Khashoggi’s murder and Saudi involvement in the Yemen Civil War.

Both houses of Congress passed a historic War Powers Resolution in April to curtail U.S. involvement, legislation which Trump promptly vetoed.

While U.S. weapons sales were on the rise even before he assumed office – U.S. weapons exports rose 30 percent during 2013-2017 over the previous five-year duration – Trump has been emboldened by unchecked power. With his own party holding power in the Senate, veto power over any binding legislation that does happen to pass, and emergency powers that Republicans refuse to rein-in, Trump’s administration practically taunts any notion of corruption investigations with deals between Washington and Riyadh. Take for instance Westinghouse Electric Company: the nuclear company declared bankruptcy in 2017 yet the company that bought it out, Brookfield Asset Management, spent $1 billion to rent a Manhattan property owned by Jared Kushner.  Perhaps coincidentally, Trump met with the company in February.

Westinghouse’s bankruptcy was pinned on failed nuclear reactor deals in the United States. It just so happens there’s another place welcoming nuclear installations with open arms: Saudi Arabia.

In 2011, the late King Abdullah devised a plan to construct 16 reactors in the kingdom with the stated goal of using it to supply energy for his country. At that time, his country’s oil exports were steadily on the rise, hitting record highs for the decade, but Abdullah declared that the kingdom should use less and export more. While the plan was later downscaled to only two reactors, Riyadh has continued its pursuit.

Naturally this has furrowed some eyebrows across the international community because while nuclear energy can certainly power a nation, it can also lead to the development of nuclear weapons. According to Mohammed bin Salman, it is not a current goal of Saudi Arabia, but in the event that Iran develops its own nuclear weapons, Riyadh would do so as well.

Saudi Arabia’s advancement towards potentially becoming a nuclear state could certainly hinder any discussions with Iran. Trump recently cancelled the Iranian nuclear deal and imposed harsh sanctions that are beginning to cripple the Iranian economy. Thus far, diplomatic discussions have yet to resume, although Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani have both spoken publicly about their willingness to meet.

Surely when they do, the Washington’s relationship with Riyadh, a longtime adversary of Iran, will be called into question. A nuclear Saudi Arabia, should it go down that path, would make it the first Middle Eastern state to develop its own weapons. Presently, Israel is only thought to have the capability with no official determination. The closest neighbors possessing nuclear arms are India and Turkey, which is a part of NATO’s nuclear weapons sharing program enabling it to possess them, but not develop their own.

Mohammed bin Salman has not shied away from ambitious pursuits to transform his nation. At times these have been markedly positive, such as permitting women to drive and allowing cinemas. However, the manner by which he is pushing Saudi Arabia to regional dominance has the potential to harm even the economics of its neighbors. For instance, Riyadh rallied some of the gulf countries to end all relations with Qatar over its alleged support for the Muslim Brotherhood. In today’s world, Saudi Arabia has the power to accuse and punish other states for supporting terrorism, a sobering notion. With nuclear capabilities, it would have ultimate regional dominance and Trump seems perfectly content with this as long as the money continues to flow.

The U.S. Congress has limited options at its disposal to break up the Washington – Riyadh relationship, and Trump has proven he can circumvent just about anything it throws his way. While the 810 permits do not allow the transfer of equipment or technology, only expertise, it’s the first sign that the romance has entered a new stage and it has the power to disrupt Iranian negotiations and regional stability, to say nothing about the continuing humanitarian conflict in Yemen.

One form of recourse that House of Representatives might try is to place conditions within its annual national defense budget, or even refuse to pass the annual National Defense Authorization Act entirely. This military funding legislation must be renewed for the Department of Defense to continue operations.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi hasn’t publicly admitted to considering the option yet, but her spokesperson said that any options available to Congress would be considered to end U.S. involvement in Yemen. Until then, a group of seven senators from both parties will hold votes of disapproval for 22 individual weapons transactions with Saudi Arabia. Although the votes have no binding power, they will publicly rebuke the continued support of the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican and staunch Trump supporter, has even added his support for the measure.

Saudi Arabia can obtain nuclear technology and know-how from a number of other states including China and Russia, so preventing it from obtaining the technology is perhaps impossible. It doesn’t have to be with U.S. support, however, and certainly not at a time when it is suffocating Iran for having a fully-IAEA compliant nuclear program.

L'articolo Nuclear Power Rising: Trump’s Relationship with Saudi Arabia Called into Question proviene da InsideOver.