$110 billion arms deal makes US hesitate to sanction Saudi Arabia?

China cannot surpass US arms sales to Saudi Arabia. Photo: AP

On October 16, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to discuss the disappearance of journalist Khashoggi, as Washington considers actions against Riyadh over the issue.

But President Trump has been reluctant to support sanctions, citing the impact of sanctions on a $110 billion arms deal he helped broker last year. The $110 billion investment, Trump said, could be spent by Riyadh in Russia, China or elsewhere.

Saudi Arabia has long sought to diversify to reduce its dependence on the United States, and to strengthen cooperation with China, the Arab Kingdom's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching more than $40 billion last year.

Last March, the two countries also signed deals worth $65 billion in areas ranging from energy to space technology.

In a commentary, Turki Aldakhil, general director of state-run Al Arabiya television, said Saudi Arabia could turn to countries like China and Russia to help meet its military needs if the United States imposes sanctions, a move that would "cause an economic disaster that would shock the entire world."

According to Mr. Aldakhil, Saudi Arabia - the world's largest oil exporter - is considering more than 30 countermeasures against the US, including trading oil in yuan instead of dollars.

In the military sphere, however, China’s arms exports to Saudi Arabia are much lower than those to the US and its European allies. According to figures from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Beijing exported only about $20 million worth of weapons last year, a paltry figure compared to the $3.4 billion from Washington.

Jonathan Fulton, a political science expert at Zayed University in Abu Dhabi, said that China has paid more attention to regional arms trade relations with Gulf countries in recent years.

China pledges $23 billion in aid and loans to Gulf countries. Photo: Getty

“Part of the reason Saudi Arabia is diversifying is because of structural changes in its relationship with the US. Another reason is clearly the increased trade and economic ties between the Gulf countries and China,” the expert said.

Meanwhile, Mr. Robert Mason, Director of the Center for Middle East Studies at the American University in Cairo, said that China does not want to get involved at this stage to avoid further tension with the Trump administration.

"I am sure China will be interested in expanding relations only if US-Saudi relations decline. However, it is difficult for the US to change its decades-long policy of supporting close economic and security relations with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, including cooperation on counterterrorism and containing Iran," Mr. Mason said./.