Trump administration pushes last-minute arms deals to Middle East

The move to go forward with a proposed $290 million sale of precision-guided bombs for Saudi Arabia comes just weeks before the Biden administration arrives.
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 20: President Donald Trump (R) holds up a chart of military hardware sales as he meets with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the Oval Office at the White House on March 20, 2018 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch-Pool/Getty Images)
President Donald Trump holds up a chart of military hardware sales as he meets with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the Oval Office at the White House on March 20, 2018, in Washington, DC. - Kevin Dietsch-Pool/Getty Images
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Jared Szuba
@JM_Szuba

The Trump administration approved major arms sales to Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Kuwait on Tuesday in a last-minute push before President-elect Joe Biden takes office.

The US State Department approved a proposed $290 million sale of 3,000 precision-guided GBU-39 Small Diameter Bombs to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. The Royal Saudi Air Force has relied on such US-made munitions for its air campaign over Yemen. The kingdom has drawn allegations of war crimes for repeatedly bombing civilian targets.

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