Arms trade

Selling More Weapons to the Reckless Saudis

As Trump prepares to go to Saudi Arabia on his first foreign trip, the U.S. is gearing up to sell the Saudis a lot more weapons:

The U.S. and Saudi Arabia are working on a package of arms deals and financial investments aimed at elevating economic and security cooperation between Washington and Riyadh after several years of strained relations over the U.S. diplomatic outreach to Iran.

The potential agreements, coupled with Mr. Trump’s scheduled arrival in Saudi Arabia this week or his first stop outside the U.S. since taking office, include a missile-defense system and heavy arms the Obama administration either refused to sell Saudi Arabia or pulled back from amid concerns about Riyadh’s role in the conflict in Yemen, according to U.S. and Saudi officials.

According to a separate Reuters report, the arms deals are estimated to be worth at least $100 billion, and when all is said and done may be worth more than $300 billion.