Local Editor
The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Republican Senator Bob Corker announced that he plans to withhold approval of US weapons sales to members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) until there is a clear path for resolving the Qatar crisis.
Corker sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson telling him that the diplomatic row within the GCC undermines the battle against Daesh, and efforts to “counter Iran”.
The country that stands to loose the most by Corker’s statement is Saudi Arabia. The U.S. President Donald Trump signed an agreement with the kingdom during his visit to Riyadh in May, which involves the sale of USD 110 billion worth of weapons to the Saudis.
Qatar’s recent purchase of USD 15 billion worth of F-15 fighter jets could also be affected.
Once the U.S. Congress is formally notified of the sale of weapons to an ally, lawmakers typically have 30 days to review the transaction.
Corker told Tillerson that “before we provide any further clearances during the informal review period on sales of lethal military equipment to the GCC states, we need a better understanding of the path to resolve the current dispute”.
On June 5, three GCC members – Saudi Arabia the UAE and Bahrain – severed ties with Doha over allegations that it funds “terrorism”.
On Friday, Doha was presented with a 13-point list of demands to end the crisis that included shutting down the Al Jazeera news network, expelling Turkish troops and curbing diplomatic relations with Iran.
The Qataris responded by saying that the list confirmed that “the illegal blockade has nothing to do with combating terrorism – it is about limiting Qatar’s sovereignty, and outsourcing our foreign policy”.
Source: LualuaTV, Edited by Website Team
