The State Department announced on Wednesday that it approved a potential $1.96 billion weapons sale for Saudi Arabia, just days after Riyadh bombed the Sanaa International Airport in Yemen, shattering a fragile truce with Ansar Allah, also known as the Houthis, that had held relatively well since 2022.
The arms sale includes up to 20,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon Systems (APKWS), kits that turn unguided rockets into precision-guided munitions, and their warheads. The deal includes 10,000 air-to-air guidance sections and 10,000 air-to-ground guidance sections.
The principal contractor for the massive deal is the US subsidiary of BAE Systems, the British multinational weapons company. The State Department said the potential sale requires the assignment of 15 additional US contractors and 15 US government representatives to “Saudi Arabia for an extended period to support program and technical reviews plus training and maintenance support in-country.”
The arms sale is a strong show of support for Saudi Arabia in the wake of the Sanaa airport bombing, which, according to a report from Axios, President Trump greenlit in a call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman a few days before the attack.
The strikes on the airport in Sanaa provoked missile and drone fire from Yemen, and Ansar Allah officials have declared that the “de-escalation” with Saudi Arabia is over, and both sides appear to be preparing for more strikes.
The deal’s announcement also comes as the US has been pounding Iran with airstrikes and Iranian forces have been targeting US bases across the region. The State Department also announced a $484 million deal for Kuwait that will provide sustainment of its C-17 fleet.
