 Spanish king hosts Saudi crown prince next week Madrid (AFP) April 6, 2018 - Saudi Arabia's crown prince meets the Spanish king in Madrid on Thursday, the royal palace said, as he continues his global diplomatic charm offensive in a bid to project a new liberal image of his conservative kingdom. Prince Mohammed bin Salman's trip to Spain will come hot on the heels of a two-day official visit to France and after a tour lasting several weeks of the United States, Britain and Egypt, where the self-styled moderniser signed multimillion-dollar deals. According to Spain's El Pais daily, he is due to sign a contract to buy five warships from Spain for two billion euros ($2.4 billion), as well as other bilateral agreements. Rights groups have denounced the planned sale -- which has been under negotiation for two years -- saying the corvettes could be used in Saudi Arabia's military campaign in Yemen, which has killed thousands of civilians. Spain and Saudi Arabia's royal families are very close due to King Felipe VI's father Juan Carlos, who was a close friend of the kingdom's late King Fahd, who reigned from 1982 to 2005, and is close to his brother King Salman. Juan Carlos was credited with playing a decisive role in 2011 in helping a Spanish consortium win a contract worth 6.7 billion euros ($8.2 billion) to build a high-speed railway linking the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. According to El Pais, Juan Carlos spent "a few days of rest" in Saudi Arabia just before Easter. Felipe VI, meanwhile, paid an official visit there in January 2017. Spain is currently the seventh largest arms exporter in the world.
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The U.S. State Department said it has approved a possible foreign military sale to Saudi Arabia of 155mm M109A5/A6 Medium Self-Propelled Howitzer structures.
The Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress of the $1.31 billion sale, for which Raytheon and Lockheed Martin are the primary contractors. Congress was notified of the possible sale on Thursday.
The possible foreign military sale would provide Saudi Arabia with "180 155mm M109A5/A6 Medium Self-Propelled Howitzer structures for conversion to 177 M109A6 Paladin Howitzer systems."
The M109A6 Paladin Howitzer system is a self-propelled, indirect-fire support weapon operated by a crew of four.
The deal also includes three Fire Support Combined Arms Tactical Trainers static training, 180 M2 HB .50 Cal Machine Guns, and eight Advanced Field Artillery Tactical Data Systems Devices, along with other products and support services, including material to aid in upgrading the Howitzer systems.
The U.S. government says the proposed foreign military sale "will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States" by strengthening the defensive capabilities of Saudi Arabia, who is a contributing partner to stability in the Middle East, the State Department said.
The State Department assessed that the sale would not alter the basic military balance in the region.
UAE pledges $200 million to support Lebanon armed forces
Abu Dhabi (AFP) April 7, 2018 -
The United Arab Emirates said on Saturday that it will give Lebanon's armed forces $200 million (162.5 million euros) in aid to help "stabilise" the country.
The foreign ministry said that $100 million would go to the army and $100 million to other state security services in Lebanon, which borders war-torn Syria.
The oil-rich Gulf country said its support was a "continuation of efforts made for the stability and prosperity of (Lebanon's) people."
The "resilience and strength" of Lebanon's military and security institutions was a priority given the region's "delicate circumstances", the statement said.
At a mid-March meeting in Rome, the international community pledged to help strengthen the Lebanese army.
France, in particular, said it would release a credit line of 400 million euros ($492 million).
On Friday, the international community announced it would provide more than $11 billion to modernise Lebanon's economy and strengthen its stability, threatened by regional crises, particularly the war in neighbouring Syria.
The loans and donations, announced at a conference in Paris aimed at supporting the Lebanese economy, are intended to help finance investment projects over the next five years.
Fears of an economic crisis have hovered over the small Middle Eastern country since the crisis in Syria began more than seven years ago, pushing more than one million refugees to flee across the border into Lebanon.
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