US senator: Biden is likely to suspend arms sales to Saudi Arabia
US President, Joe Biden, is likely to stop any new arms sales to Saudi Arabia, amid an ongoing row with the Kingdom over oil production cuts, a key senator said.
“I think you’ll see both the administration and the Senate take action, and one of the most likely actions is to stop any future arms sales,” Sen. Chris Coons, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Appropriations Committees, told CNN during a televised interview on Friday
The comments come as the Biden administration and congressional Democrats continue to escalate their war of words with Riyadh after Saudi Arabia backed a 2 million barrel per day production cut.
On Thursday, the Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that his country is “reviewing” consequences for Saudi Arabia after a decision by OPEC+ to cut oil production.”
Moreover, The White House classified the decision of the Saudi-led OPEC + to significantly reduce oil production as “amounting to moral and military support” for Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters the decision was “certainly a form of economic support for Russian President Vladimir Putin” because it allows him to “continue to fund his war machine.”
E.M