US to sell Arab states arms worth $5bn
The US plans to sell arms worth $4.6 billion to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman.
The announcement came two weeks after the US said it would sell Israel its latest supply of JP-8 aviation fuel valued at up to $210 million to help Israeli warplanes “keep peace and security in the region”.
In the newly proposed sale, battle tanks worth $2.9 billion will be sold to Saudi Arabia to protect their critical infrastructure.
AH-64 Apache helicopters worth $400 million would also go to Saudi Arabia.
The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain would get UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters, the UAE $808 million worth and Bahrain $252 million worth.
Jordan would get a potential $156 million in upgrades to 1,000 of its M113 A1 armoured personnel carriers.
Javelin anti-tank missiles worth $48million would go to Oman under the deals put forward by the Pentagon’s defence security co-operation agency which administers US government-to-government arms sales.
Notices of proposed US arms sales are required by US law once they pass certain value thresholds.
They do not mean that a sale has been concluded.
Congress may block a sale if both houses pass resolutions of disapproval within 30 days of formal notification.