The U.S. Has Ratcheted Up Arms Sales To Saudi Arabia

In the wake of the disappearance and alleged murder of Washington Post writer Jamal Khashoggi, President Trump has said it would be "foolish" to cancel a massive arms deal with Saudi Arabia. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is meeting King Salman in Riyadh and the pressure is increasing on the Saudis to explain what happened to the journalist.

That arms deal comprises tanks, frigates, missile and radar systems, and it's worth $110 billion over several years. Washington's arms trade with Riyadh has become increasingly controversial as weapons manufactured in the U.S. are causing civilian casualties in the war in Yemen. On Saturday, Saudi aircraft targeted two buses fleeing Hudaydah, killing 17 people.

The following infographic uses Sipri data to show how the U.S. has ratcheted up arms sales to Saudi Arabia in recent years. The data is in TIV (trend-indicator value), which is based on the known unit production costs of weapons and represents the transfer of military resources rather than the financial value of the transfer.