UK reaffirms military support for Saudi regime

British Defence Secretary Philip Hammond has met his Saudi Arabian counterpart, Salman Bin Abdul Aziz, reaffirming London’s military support for the Al Saud kingdom while it faces accusations of violent crackdown on peaceful anti-regime protests.

At a meeting in the Saudi capital Riyadh on December 3, Hammond reiterated the UK government’s backing for the ruling regime of the oil-rich country despite Al Saud brutal crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations held from time to time to demand the release of political prisoners.

The two sides decided to expand bilateral relations especially in the military field, while the Arab kingdom’s officials face strong criticisms for their warnings to deal “firmly” with anti-regime rallies.

Saudi Arabia is Britain’s largest trading partner in the Middle East, with bilateral trade worth more than £15 billion every year. Earlier in May, the Arab country signed a £1.8 billion deal with the British BAE Systems to buy 30 more Hawk jets and to train Saudi pilots to fly the Eurofighter Typhoon jets which were already ordered from the company. Saudi Arabia is Britain’s largest trading partner in the Middle East, with bilateral trade worth over £15 billion every year.

Since February 2011, protesters have held demonstrations on an almost regular basis in Saudi Arabia, mainly in Qatif and Awamiyah in Eastern Province, primarily calling for the release of all political prisoners, freedom of expression and assembly, as well as an end to widespread discrimination.

However, the demonstrations turned into protests against the repressive Al Saud regime, especially after November 2011, when Saudi security forces killed five protesters and injured others in the province.