The article that I read talked about a meeting between US president Donald Trump and Mohammed bin Salman, crown prince of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has been buying US weapons and advanced military equipment to aid in their invasion of Yemen. Trump has proposed a continuation of these arms deals, believing they create American jobs and bring revenue to the US. It’s estimated to be about $12.5 billion in arms sales. Trump has said that, “There’s nobody that even comes close to us in terms of technology and the quality of the equipment, and Saudi Arabia appreciates that.” Not everyone seems to view the situation in Yemen as a financial opportunity to be exploited, as Mr. Trump does. There has been a bipartisan effort to limit US involvement in Yemen due to concern over civilians being killed. Senators Bernie Sanders, Mike Lee, and Chris Murphy introduced a bill back in February to withdraw US forces from Yemen. Currently the US only “provides limited intelligence and refueling for warplanes,” which doesn’t sound like much, but it is possible for the US to influence the direction of the conflict by supplying these weapons to the Saudis. Antiwar demonstrations were held in DC and New York, and are also scheduled to happen in Boston, coinciding with Prince Mohammed’s visit to the States.
Arab World Blog 