Saudi Arabia: US approves $2.4bn deals

A number of large defence contracts were unveiled between Saudi Arabia and the United States, during the visit of Crown Prince and defence minister Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) in late March/early April – a noted contrast to the lack of deal making during his visit to the UK earlier in March, where the only development was a commitment to continue discussing an order for Typhoon jets. The American deals totalled close to $2.4bn and came in two batches. The largest element was a $1.3bn order for howitzers announced by the State Department on 5 April.