Saudi Arabia has spent a fortune buying arms to prosecute a war that has killed almost a quarter of a million people — the world’s worst humanitarian catastrophe in our lifetime. However, no real achievement was reported, as Saudi Arabia failed to stop Houthi attacks on the Kingdom.
Military sources recently revealed that the Canadian government used an opaque U.S. military sales program to provide Saudi Arabia with billions of dollars worth of armoured vehicles, some of which were shipped out urgently after the Kingdom joined the war in Yemen.
It’s the second-largest weapons export deal in Canadian history. But the Saudi clients have never been disclosed by the Canadian government.
Nor has the fact been reported that the deal was struck at the behest of a U.S. plan to beef up the Saudi military.
A $14 billion deal was reached in 2014 for a newer model of armored vehicle – the largest such deal in Canadian history.
But Canada’s second-biggest arms deal, signed five years earlier, was kept secret.
The vehicles manufactured in Canada were of the same make later seen being used in Saudi Arabia’s operations in Yemen for years.
Eight-wheeled armoured combat vehicles, like those provided by Canada, are now frequently used in Saudi propaganda and even appear to be included in the logo of the National Guard.
In September 2017, while the war was ongoing, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government also received “urgent” export applications from General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada for LAV exports to Saudi Arabia. These applications specifically referenced LAVs being sent to the Saudi National Guard through FMS, one of the documents obtained by The Breach shows.
Due to the Saudi-led Coalition’s record of violating international humanitarian law during the conflict, Canada’s provision of LAVs to the Kingdom constitutes a breach of its obligations under the Arms Trade Treaty.
According to the monitoring website Lost Armour, which tracks major military equipment destroyed during the conflict, at least 61 LAV-25s and its variants were seized or destroyed by Yemeni rebels during the course of the war.
Canadian-made LAV-25s have also been diverted to Saudi Arabia’s puppet Yemeni government, as detailed in an investigation by Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism in 2019. Credible allegations of diversion legally require action by Canadian officials, but Global Affairs Canada would not tell the reporters how much evidence it would need to actually open an investigation.
Since the start of the Yemen war, Saudi Arabia’s military spending has increased to reach an estimated $63 billion, placing it third in the world.
Within the last 10 years, Saudi Arabia has turned itself into the world’s largest buyer of weapons on the world market. Ten years ago, it was buying 90% less than they are today.
The US and UK are the kingdom’s top suppliers. With purchases of astonishingly expensive weapons like helicopters, tanks, and guided missiles, nearly all of its foreign-made weapons (by value) come from these two countries.
A total of 61% of Saudi Arabia’s arms imports came from the U.S., and 49% of British arms exports are allocated to Saudi Arabia.
On the other hand, Saudi Arabia was the third-largest recipient of German arms. The total for 2018 was €416.4 million. The kingdom was also considered France’s second-best arms customer between 2008 and 2017.
The ramp up has been significant since their March 2015 intervention in the Yemen civil war.
Saudi Arabia declared its war on Yemen in 2015 and said it would last for a few months. The Kingdom bet on its military forces and Gulf allies. However, the war has resulted in heavy military and economic losses.
MBS repeatedly said that his war with the Houthis would only last a few days. The actual military losses, however, are much higher than those declared.
