|
Dems scrutinize proposal for $20 billion arms sale to Saudis |
|
By Elana Schor
|
|
Posted: 07/31/07 08:13 PM [ET] |
Democrats on Monday continued to raise questions about the Bush administration’s plans to sell up to $20 billion in weapons to Saudi Arabia and its neighbors, foreshadowing a difficult battle for congressional approval of the deal.
The arms package is not expected to come before Congress until the fall, but seven House Democrats already have backed New York Reps. Anthony Weiner (D) and Jerrold Nadler (D) in calling for a resolution to block the sale. Two Senate Democrats echoed their colleagues’ concerns over supplying advanced weaponry to Saudi Arabia, long accused of financially supporting terrorist groups.
Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) called for a declaration of cooperation between the administration and the Saudi government, which the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Zalmay Khalilzad, has criticized for undercutting progress in Iraq.
“Certainly, giving Saudi Arabia more weapons now, knowing full well that it’s believed there are transfers of weapons and money to groups that are fighting in Iraq, groups that are training for terrorist actions,” is troubling, Lautenberg said.
Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) voiced qualms about the safety of the arms being traded to several countries, including Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.
“I’m very concerned about more weapons being made available to countries in the Middle East that have a spotty record of stability,” Cardin said. With the region moving from “conflict to conflict to conflict,” he added, “I worry about where these arms could be used.”
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Tom Lantos (D-Calif.) has asked for a complete briefing on the sale in September while not ruling out a hearing or possible support for the resolution of disapproval.
“We particularly want to ensure that these arrangements include only defensive systems, and not items that can be used for other purposes,” Lantos said in a Saturday statement.
Lantos’s Senate counterpart, Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Joseph Biden (D-Del.), also sounded a note of caution. The 2008 presidential hopeful pointed out that the details of the Saudi portion of the sale have yet to be cemented.
“This isn’t ready for primetime yet, and the administration hasn’t claimed that it is,” Biden said Monday through a spokeswoman. “When we get answers [to questions already posed], and the specific proposed sales, we will look very carefully to ensure they make sense individually and as a whole.”
Other lawmakers expressing skepticism since the arms sale first was reported over the weekend include House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.), House Minority Whip Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) and Reps. Christopher Shays (R-Conn.) and Jane Harman (D-Calif.).
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice left for the Middle East on Sunday; the arms package is expected to be high on the trip’s agenda. The administration has portrayed the deal as a stabilizer of relations with regional opponents of Iran, establishing a united front against the regime of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
“Further modernizing the Egyptian and Saudi armed forces and increasing interoperability will bolster our partners’ resolve in confronting the threat of radicalism and cement their respective roles as regional leaders in the quest for Middle East peace,” Rice said in a Monday statement. She noted that Congress and U.S. allies would be closely consulted on the details of the deal.
Congressional misgivings about the arms deal may be assuaged by support for Israel, for which the package bestows $30 billion in new aid over 10 years. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has thrown Jerusalem’s support behind the sale, acknowledging that weapons would go to several countries that do not recognize Israel but hailing the Bush administration’s commitment to his country’s military advantage in the region.
“We’ll make our independent judgments as a Congress, but if the Israelis are satisfied or say they’re satisfied, that factors into it,” Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.) said, adding he would not rush to judgment at this early stage. “I’m not saying it’s the final word, but that factors into it.”
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, Washington’s chief advocate for U.S.-Israel relations, did not issue a public statement on the deal. A source who follows ties between Washington and Jerusalem predicted that lawmakers would go over the deal with a fine-toothed comb this fall.
“The idea that Iran is the central threat to the region is the important thing to take away from what we’re hearing,” the source said.
While congressional attempts to block arms sales never have fully succeeded, according to the Congressional Research Service, past efforts have forced significant concessions in the terms of such deals.
|
