US Congress shifts against Saudi and UAE, hinting at problems post-Trump

GULF COUNTRIES - In Brief 17 Jul 2019 by Justin Alexander
Later today, the US House of Representatives will pass resolutions blocking emergency arms sales to Saudi Arabia and UAE, which the Administration had fast-tracked as part of its show of force against Iran. President Trump will veto the resolutions, but they are still indicative of hardening opinion in Congress over a range of issues which could evenutally lead to policy shifts, particularly if a Democrat wins in 2020. Whoever is president, the criticism from Congress increases the pressure for changes in policy on Yemen and other contentions issues, including the boycott of Qatar. These resolutions are the House versions of similar measures that narrowly passed in the Senate on June 20th. The House is initially just voting to block 3 out of 22 arms deals, focusing on the most controversial item, Paveway bombs, used in airstrikes in Yemen. The president is expected to exercise his veto on the joint House/Senate resolutions, which is why the House is not wasting time on the other 19 items, but the important indicator will be the number of Republicans who vote for the resolutions. In the Senate, 7 (out of 53) Republicans voted against sales to Saudi Arabia and 5 against sales to the UAE. A similar share of defections in the House would require 26 (out of 197) to vote against Saudi and 19 against the UAE.Both US chambers have grown increasingly critical of Saudi Arabia over the last year, and the UAE to a lesser extent. Whereas most previous resolutions on blocking arms sales or on ending US support for the war in Yemen typically failed with opposition from almost all Republican plus some Democrats, the votes have shifted as the Yemen war has dragged on (and as a result o...

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