US Approves $1.29 Billion Sale of Bombs to Saudi Arabia
Quote:
Washington (AFP) - The United States has approved a $1.29 billion deal to replenish the Saudi air force's arsenal, depleted by its controversial bombing campaign against rebels in Yemen.
Congress has 30 days to block the sale but is unlikely to do so, and shipment of the more than 19,000 smart bombs is urgent, with strikes continuing daily.
Amazing how topical this show manages to stay about a decade later.
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Ah, the Iran-Saudi Arabia proxy war sure is beneficial for the American industrial military complex. Although that isn't fair to the Americans - we sell weapons to them as well.
Next up we need general western infantry on the ground in Iraq and Syria.
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The Middle-East weapons trade is possibly even more confusing than the politics.
Possibly my favourite tidbit is that the Russians are actually directly arming the Syrian rebels, even though they're there to bomb them.
From what I've understood they mostly supposedly arm the Syriacs, who are part of the Eastern Christianity same as Russia, so that makes marginal sense. You know, protecting the Christians from ISIS. Even though obviously they also bomb the Syriac Christians because they're anti-government rebels. But then sometimes the Russians might also just hand over those arms to the Kurds "for distribution". (As reported by some reporters.) Whether that is approved in Moscow is anyone's guess. Maybe they've been bribed by the Kurds, or maybe they just like the Kurds 'cause they get s*** done. Or maybe they arm the Kurds so they can fight the Turkish who are an ally of US.
The end result is that every keeps getting more weapons, but also pretty much everyone gets them irregurarly and from different sources just so things stay hard to follow.
I'm sure someone could design some crazy board game around this.
The Middle-East weapons trade is possibly even more confusing than the politics.
Possibly my favourite tidbit is that the Russians are actually directly arming the Syrian rebels, even though they're there to bomb them.
From what I've understood they mostly supposedly arm the Syriacs, who are part of the Eastern Christianity same as Russia, so that makes marginal sense. You know, protecting the Christians from ISIS. Even though obviously they also bomb the Syriac Christians because they're anti-government rebels. But then sometimes the Russians might also just hand over those arms to the Kurds "for distribution". (As reported by some reporters.) Whether that is approved in Moscow is anyone's guess. Maybe they've been bribed by the Kurds, or maybe they just like the Kurds 'cause they get s*** done. Or maybe they arm the Kurds so they can fight the Turkish who are an ally of US.
The end result is that every keeps getting more weapons, but also pretty much everyone gets them irregurarly and from different sources just so things stay hard to follow.
I'm sure someone could design some crazy board game around this.
Remember this part from Lord of War?
Simeon Weisz: I don't think you and I are in the same business. You think I just sell guns, don't you? I don't. I take sides. Yuri: But in the Iran-Iraq War, you sold guns to both sides.
Simeon Weisz: Did you ever consider that I wanted both sides to lose? Bullets change governments far surer than votes. You're in the wrong place, my young friend; this is no place for amateurs.
This is probably more to do with counter-balancing Iran than oil. The US is actually on the way to becoming oil independent very quickly:
Edit:
This could also just be straight up profiteering. This deal will keep a lot of Americans employed.
I can't remember if it was the "Prize" or the "Quest" but, either way, it was mentioned that the US being an import state for so long was a mixture of strategy and economics. US shale has been a known commodity for a very long time. Yes, it wasn't economic at the time to get, but importing oil from others and drawing down their reserves while keeping the US reserves safely stored in the ground had some obvious long term benefits.
Anywho, once the world doesn't have oil to battle over, we'll just start fighting over rare earth metals
P.S. I highly recommend both of those books by the way.
I find the EU, in particular, is remarkably hypocritical about its arms industry. Nobody wants to be involved in military action, and even European NATO countries are reluctant to puts troops in harms way or be seen to be involved in something as ugly as war. And yet virtually every country in the EU enthusiastically manufactures and sells arms abroad.
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If this day gets you riled up, you obviously aren't numb to the disappointment yet to be a real fan.
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Ah, the Iran-Saudi Arabia proxy war sure is beneficial for the American industrial military complex. Although that isn't fair to the Americans - we sell weapons to them as well.
Next up we need general western infantry on the ground in Iraq and Syria.
I find the EU, in particular, is remarkably hypocritical about its arms industry. Nobody wants to be involved in military action, and even European NATO countries are reluctant to puts troops in harms way or be seen to be involved in something as ugly as war. And yet virtually every country in the EU enthusiastically manufactures and sells arms abroad.
US Approves $1.29 Billion Sale of Bombs to Saudi Arabia
