Biden needs congress to stop blocking sales

Gopal Misra, Reporter for Tehelka, Daijiworld, and HTDS Content Services “Can America succeed in winning back its old friend Saudi Arabia?,” June 16, 2023

http://tehelka.com/can-america-succeed-in-winning-back-its-old-friend-saudi-arabia/

Convergence of Policies

In spite of the improvement in the Saudi Arabia-Iran ties, Saudi leaders are also keen to end the war in Yemen, something also sought by the U.S. The Blinken’s visit to Saudi Arabia also shows that he is more eager to engage internationally, particularly after being involved in prisoner swaps in the Moscow-Ukraine conflict. The kingdom hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in May at an Arab League summit.

It is hoped that after this visit, Washington will leverage its security relationship with Saudi Arabia as it gets warmer towards China and Russia. However, the Saudis point out that Biden can’t provide weapons, when it comes to Congress stopping arms sales to the kingdom.

Interestingly, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Arabian Peninsula Affairs, Daniel Benaim has asserted before the media that “human rights are a pillar of how this administration engages with countries around the world and in this region,” but he declined to discuss specifics. He also questioned whether Blinken would be bringing up human rights issues, including Khashoggi’s death, during the visit.