US approves $500 million sales of spare parts for Saudi Arabian military

Middle East, News, US September 23, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

The U.S. State Department approved Saudi Arabia’s request to acquire crucial spare and repair parts for the country’s fleet of U.S.-made combat vehicles. The deal is worth $500 million and comes only a day after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said that Saudi normalization with Israel is getting closer.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency of the U.S. State Department announced that a possible foreign military sale would be effective soon. The department which oversees foreign military sales, announced its approval and notified Congress which would make the final decision on the sale.

Under the deal, Saudi Arabia would buy spare parts and repair equipment for its existing fleet of land vehicles including Abrams and M-60 tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles, light armored vehicles, and Humvees.

The deal also covers the provision of spare parts for military rifles, and pistols as well as other crew-served weapons such as TOW anti-tank missile launchers, radar sets, recoilless rifles as well as computer units, radar sets, and night vision devices, among other equipment.

The proposed sale would be carried out through the existing Cooperative Logistics Supply Support Arrangement (CLSSA) program, in which Saudi Arabia has participated since 1965. Defense Security Cooperation Agency released a statement regarding the deal saying that this transaction would support U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives by supporting a strategic partner’s self-defense and promoting stability in the Middle East.

^{Saudi officials watch as up-armored M1070 Heavy Equipment Transporters laden with M1A2 Abrams tanks and M2 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles enter the customs area at the border of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait on December 25, 2021. (Image Credit: U.S. DOD/Sgt. 1st Class Mary Katzenberger)}

Saudi Arabia’s Royal Saudi Land Forces operate a variety of U.S.-made tanks and land combat vehicles. In 2016, Riyadh requested to buy up to 153 M1A1/A2 tanks for conversion to 133 M1A2S Saudi Abrams-configured main battle tanks as part of a $1.2 billion deal.

At the time, the Pentagon stated that 20 of these tanks were being newly purchased as battle damage replacements for the country’s existing fleet. Saudi Arabia has lost a lot of Abrams tanks in Yemen while fighting Iranian-backed Houthi rebel forces.

Easing military sales for Saudi Arabia

Although Saudi Arabia has been seeking to purchase advanced military systems from the United States, they have been blocked or delayed due to Congress and the Biden Administration’s reservations about the Kingdom’s human rights violations.

White House blocked the supply of offensive weapons to Saudi Arabia in 2021 amid calls from leading Democrats who also objected to the Kingdom’s controversial role in Yemen’s civil war.

Relations between Washington and Riyadh have thawed recently as the Saudi Crown Prince indicated his country’s willingness to normalize relations with Israel. In a recent interview with a U.S.-based media outlet, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman said that “every day we get closer” to normalizing ties with Israel.