The US President, Donald Trump, arrived in the UK this morning for a state visit. One issue that should be on the agenda is the crisis in Yemen. Over the last four years, Saudi Arabian-led forces have waged a brutal bombardment on Yemen, which US-made and UK-made weapons have played a central role in.
Last month the Trump administration used emergency powers to sidestep Congress to sell $8 billion worth of weapons to Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates. This followed unprecedented calls from the Congress and Senate to halt arms sales and support for the war.
The US Government is the biggest arms dealer in the world, accounting for around one third of all arms sales in the world. Among those meeting Trump while he’s in the UK are executives from BAE Systems, the UK’s biggest arms company.
Andrew Smith of Campaign Against Arms Trade said:
For decades now successive US Governments have talked about freedom and democracy while arming and supporting human rights abusing regimes around the world. US and UK arms sales have fueled and enabled the devastating war in Yemen, which has created the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.
The policies that Trump and his administration have followed are racist, reactionary and warmongering. These are policies that must be challenged at home and condemned abroad.
The visit comes at a time when tensions between the US and Iran are particularly high. Last month the President Tweeted “If Iran wants to fight, that will be the official end of Iran. Never threaten the United States again!”
Andrew Smith continued:
The rhetoric coming from the White House is very concerning. The US has a long history of appalling interventionism and wars. These conflicts have done terrible damage and killed thousands of people. What is needed is caution, de-escalation and diplomacy, not threats of military strength from the world’s only superpower.
ENDS
For further information please contact Andrew at media(at)caat·org·uk or call 020 7281 0297.
