The Republican-led Senate voted Thursday to block $8.1 billion in<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/britain-acted-unlawfully-on-saudi-arms-exports-court-rules-228952"> US arms sales to Saudi Arabia</a> and other Arab allies, as legislators outraged with the kingdom delivered a symbolic rebuke to President Donald Trump.

Some seven Republicans joined Democrats in supporting each of three resolutions that would prevent the controversial sales announced earlier this year by Trump.

The measures would block 22 separate sales of aircraft support maintenance, precision-guided munitions and other weapons to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan at a moment of heightened tensions in the Middle East.

The votes were only assured this week when Republican leadership agreed to hold the sensitive roll calls on the arms sales that critics say will aggravate the devastating war in Yemen.

Trump's administration took the extraordinary step of bypassing Congress to approve the sale in May, as his administration declared Iran to be a "fundamental threat" to the stability of the Middle East.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had said the administration was responding to an emergency caused by Saudi Arabia's historic rival Iran, which backs the Huthi rebels in Yemen.

Senators, including some Republicans, said there were no legitimate grounds to circumvent Congress, which has the right to disapprove arms sales.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a Trump loyalist on several other fronts, offered a full-throated rebuke of the arm sales -- and of the Saudi leadership.

Graham said he hoped his vote would "send a signal to Saudi Arabia that if you act the way you're acting, there is no space for a strategic relationship."&nbsp;

The senator was referring to last year's brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey at the hands of Saudi agents, an incident that triggered a full-blown crisis in Riyadh's relations with the West.

"There is no amount of oil that you can produce that will get me and others to give you a pass on chopping somebody up in a consulate," Graham said, adding that there is also "no amount of threat coming from Iran that's going to require me to give a pass to this brutal barbaric behavior."

The measures would still need to pass the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives before they go to the president's desk.&nbsp;

Trump is expected to veto them, and it will remain an uphill climb for Congress to come up with a two-thirds vote to overcome a veto.

The Republican-led Senate voted Thursday to block $8.1 billion in US arms sales to Saudi Arabia and other Arab allies, as legislators outraged with the kingdom delivered a symbolic rebuke to President Donald Trump.

The Republican-led Senate voted Thursday to block $8.1 billion in US arms sales to Saudi Arabia and other Arab allies, as legislators outraged with the kingdom delivered a symbolic rebuke to President Donald Trump. Some seven Republicans joined Democrats in supporting each of three resolutions that would prevent the controversial sales announced earlier this year by Trump. The measures would block 22 separate sales of aircraft support maintenance, precision-guided munitions and other weapons to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan at a moment of heightened tensions in the Middle East. The votes were only assured this week when Republican leadership agreed to hold the sensitive roll calls on the arms sales that critics say will aggravate the devastating war in Yemen. Trump's administration took the extraordinary step of bypassing Congress to approve the sale in May, as his administration declared Iran to be a "fundamental threat" to the stability of the Middle East. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had said the administration was responding to an emergency caused by Saudi Arabia's historic rival Iran, which backs the Huthi rebels in Yemen. Senators, including some Republicans, said there were no legitimate grounds to circumvent Congress, which has the right to disapprove arms sales. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a Trump loyalist on several other fronts, offered a full-throated rebuke of the arm sales -- and of the Saudi leadership. Graham said he hoped his vote would "send a signal to Saudi Arabia that if you act the way you're acting, there is no space for a strategic relationship." The senator was referring to last year's brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey at the hands of Saudi agents, an incident that triggered a full-blown crisis in Riyadh's relations with the West. "There is no amount of oil that you can produce that will get me and others to give you a pass on chopping somebody up in a consulate," Graham said, adding that there is also "no amount of threat coming from Iran that's going to require me to give a pass to this brutal barbaric behavior." The measures would still need to pass the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives before they go to the president's desk. Trump is expected to veto them, and it will remain an uphill climb for Congress to come up with a two-thirds vote to overcome a veto.

US Senators vote to block multi-billion dollar arms sale to Saudi Arabia

Six days after Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared, US President Donald Trump tried to play down the crisis, saying "hopefully that will sort itself out".

It did not, and on October 10, amid a growing outcry, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and national security adviser John Bolton pressed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, in what one US official described as a "stern" phone call, to identify who was responsible for Khashoggi's disappearance or death.

Trump then seemed to give Saudi Arabia the benefit of the doubt, suggesting "rogue killers" may have been to blame and criticizing a growing view that this was a case of state murder.

He changed his tone once again late this week, raising the prospect of sanctions against Riyadh.

But when Saudi Arabia finally admitted on Saturday that Khashoggi was dead, saying he was killed in a fight inside the consulate, Trump said the official explanation was "credible" even as Republican and Democratic lawmakers responded with anger and disbelief.

Over the last two weeks, Trump has at times spoken of punishing Saudi Arabia but appeared reluctant to follow through against a close economic and security ally in the Middle East, a key player in ensuring the stability of global oil markets, and a major customer of arms deals that he says are "tremendous".

"Trump's dug himself into a hole," said Aaron David Miller, a former Middle East adviser to both Democratic and Republican administrations. "He will have to take some kind of action."

Behind the scenes, though, Trump's aides scrambled to craft a response, especially as the bipartisan outcry in the Washington establishment grew.

When news of Khashoggi's disappearance first broke, aides made clear to White House chief of staff John Kelly that the case was not going away, two senior White House officials said.

Kushner, who had cultivated a close personal relationship with the crown prince, commonly known as MbS, urged Trump to act with caution to avoid upsetting a critical strategic and economic relationship, a senior administration official said.

Kushner was heavily involved in making Saudi Arabia Trump's first stop on his maiden international trip as president last year.

As grim allegations emerged from Turkey about Khashoggi’s death and the Saudis stuck to their denials, Trump felt pressure from congressional Democrats and some of his own Republicans.

US&nbsp;Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican close to Trump, accused MbS of ordering Khashoggi's murder and called him a "wrecking ball" jeopardizing relations with the United States.

When Riyadh came out with its official version of what happened inside the consulate, Graham quickly tweeted he was "skeptical of the new Saudi narrative".

'Not a US citizen'

Trump sought to justify his muted response by pointing out the incident occurred in Turkey and that Khashoggi, a US&nbsp;resident and columnist for the Washington Post, was "not a United States citizen".

Critics accused Trump of trying to give the Saudis diplomatic cover and buy time for them to get their story straight, something Trump's aides denied.

At the same time, Peter Navarro, Trump’s White House trade chief and architect of his “Buy American” policy to ease restrictions on foreign arms sales, was stressing the importance of Saudi weapons deals and the implications for US&nbsp;jobs, another administration official told Reuters.

Trump repeatedly touted the $110 billion in weapons deals he announced during his visit to Saudi Arabia last year, and insisted around 500,000 US&nbsp;jobs were at stake. Experts have dismissed the sales and jobs numbers as highly exaggerated.

Some Trump aides raised doubts about the veracity of the Turkish government’s leaks of what it says happened to Khashoggi.

But as the days dragged on and evidence of Khashoggi’s death mounted, Trump's view began to shift, White House officials said.

He ordered Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to drop what he was doing and fly to Riyadh for talks at mid-week, and was then briefed by him at the White House on Thursday.

Critics slammed Pompeo for appearing to hold court in a festive manner with MbS, undercutting the severity of the US&nbsp;message.

But one senior White House official countered, saying Pompeo told the Saudi royals that “you need to give us some legitimate information soon, people aren’t just going to let it drag on.'”

Speaking to reporters during a trip to Arizona on Friday, Trump said he was ready to “listen to what Congress has to say” about actions to be taken in the Khashoggi case, yet also made clear he wanted to continue to protect defense contracts, and U.S. jobs dependent on them.

Congress has already triggered a mechanism for the U.S. Treasury Department to consider human rights sanctions against Saudi Arabia and some lawmakers have vowed to block further arms sales to Riyadh, a move that Trump is likely to oppose.

Six days after Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared, US President Donald Trump tried to play down the crisis, saying "hopefully that will sort itself out".

Six days after Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared, US President Donald Trump tried to play down the crisis, saying "hopefully that will sort itself out". It did not, and on October 10, amid a growing outcry, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and national security adviser John Bolton pressed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, in what one US official described as a "stern" phone call, to identify who was responsible for Khashoggi's disappearance or death. Trump then seemed to give Saudi Arabia the benefit of the doubt, suggesting "rogue killers" may have been to blame and criticizing a growing view that this was a case of state murder. He changed his tone once again late this week, raising the prospect of sanctions against Riyadh. But when Saudi Arabia finally admitted on Saturday that Khashoggi was dead, saying he was killed in a fight inside the consulate, Trump said the official explanation was "credible" even as Republican and Democratic lawmakers responded with anger and disbelief. Over the last two weeks, Trump has at times spoken of punishing Saudi Arabia but appeared reluctant to follow through against a close economic and security ally in the Middle East, a key player in ensuring the stability of global oil markets, and a major customer of arms deals that he says are "tremendous". "Trump's dug himself into a hole," said Aaron David Miller, a former Middle East adviser to both Democratic and Republican administrations. "He will have to take some kind of action." Behind the scenes, though, Trump's aides scrambled to craft a response, especially as the bipartisan outcry in the Washington establishment grew. When news of Khashoggi's disappearance first broke, aides made clear to White House chief of staff John Kelly that the case was not going away, two senior White House officials said. Kushner, who had cultivated a close personal relationship with the crown prince, commonly known as MbS, urged Trump to act with caution to avoid upsetting a critical strategic and economic relationship, a senior administration official said. Kushner was heavily involved in making Saudi Arabia Trump's first stop on his maiden international trip as president last year. As grim allegations emerged from Turkey about Khashoggi’s death and the Saudis stuck to their denials, Trump felt pressure from congressional Democrats and some of his own Republicans. US Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican close to Trump, accused MbS of ordering Khashoggi's murder and called him a "wrecking ball" jeopardizing relations with the United States. When Riyadh came out with its official version of what happened inside the consulate, Graham quickly tweeted he was "skeptical of the new Saudi narrative". 'Not a US citizen' Trump sought to justify his muted response by pointing out the incident occurred in Turkey and that Khashoggi, a US resident and columnist for the Washington Post, was "not a United States citizen". Critics accused Trump of trying to give the Saudis diplomatic cover and buy time for them to get their story straight, something Trump's aides denied. At the same time, Peter Navarro, Trump’s White House trade chief and architect of his “Buy American” policy to ease restrictions on foreign arms sales, was stressing the importance of Saudi weapons deals and the implications for US jobs, another administration official told Reuters. Trump repeatedly touted the $110 billion in weapons deals he announced during his visit to Saudi Arabia last year, and insisted around 500,000 US jobs were at stake. Experts have dismissed the sales and jobs numbers as highly exaggerated. Some Trump aides raised doubts about the veracity of the Turkish government’s leaks of what it says happened to Khashoggi. But as the days dragged on and evidence of Khashoggi’s death mounted, Trump's view began to shift, White House officials said. He ordered Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to drop what he was doing and fly to Riyadh for talks at mid-week, and was then briefed by him at the White House on Thursday. Critics slammed Pompeo for appearing to hold court in a festive manner with MbS, undercutting the severity of the US message. But one senior White House official countered, saying Pompeo told the Saudi royals that “you need to give us some legitimate information soon, people aren’t just going to let it drag on.'” Speaking to reporters during a trip to Arizona on Friday, Trump said he was ready to “listen to what Congress has to say” about actions to be taken in the Khashoggi case, yet also made clear he wanted to continue to protect defense contracts, and U.S. jobs dependent on them. Congress has already triggered a mechanism for the U.S. Treasury Department to consider human rights sanctions against Saudi Arabia and some lawmakers have vowed to block further arms sales to Riyadh, a move that Trump is likely to oppose.

Trump a reluctant critic of Saudi Arabia despite pressure to act

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US Senators vote to block multi-billion dollar arms sale to Saudi Arabia

Trump a reluctant critic of Saudi Arabia despite pressure to act