Joe Biden hates the Saudi ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, and the feeling is mutual. Biden is currently putting on his “diplomatic charm” with the Prince because Saudi Arabia wants to join BRICS.
The BRICS payment system is under discussion and will be anything but USD. If the Saudis join BRICS, it will kill off the USD.
Washington is finally concerned after they pushed Saudi Arabia in that direction.
Biden can’t keep releasing fuel from the oil reserves, gas prices are rising, and an election is coming up. As a consequence, Biden wants to make up with the Saudis after brutally attacking the Prince, MPS, for years.
The US wants more military bases in Saudi Arabia. The Saudis want a domestic nuclear [weapons] program, and the US might go for it
In April, the NY Times reported that the Saudis want help developing nuclear weapons and are exploring options with China and Russia.
The Times reports:
Some analysts say that is part of a strategy to pressure Washington to work with the Saudi government on its own terms; others say the prince sees an emerging multipolar world in which the United States plays a less dominant role. Saudi Arabia also agreed in March to a diplomatic rapprochement with Iran after China acted as a broker.
They were talking about nuclear energy, but that can be converted to weaponry.
It would end the nuclear proliferation treaty if Saudi Arabia developed a nuclear weapons program. Turkey would jump on it, and other countries in an unstable middle east.
Israel’s Netanyahu allegedly seems ready to allow it despite the threat, based on an interview on Sunday. Hours later, Netanyahu’s office clarified that Israel will not allow any of its neighbors to develop a nuclear weapons program. The statement, however, stopped short of addressing the enrichment question.
Robert Einhorn of the Brookings Institution, formerly a senior U.S. State Department official responsible for non-proliferation, told Haaretz that the U.S. has a clear interest to be involved in any future Saudi civil nuclear program. He added that it is also in their interest to not have such a program affiliated with China or Russia. Still, Einhorn cautioned, that does not mean the Biden administration should agree to any Saudi demand, especially on the issue of uranium enrichment, Haaretz reports.
Our feckless president would go for it to keep Saudi Arabia out of BRICS and help promote Democrats in the 2024 elections. He’s capable.
MORE WEAPONS FOR TAIWAN
The State Department also signed off on an agreement to send Taiwan $500 million in arms. The US will send infrared search tracking systems for F-16 fighter jets and other equipment related to the military aircraft to Taiwan.
Additionally, the sale includes computer software and spare parts.
The move will irk Beijing and probably draw an unpleasant response. They have already warned the US to not go down this path.
Lockheed Martin will hold the contract.
The new agreement comes after the U.S. revealed another weapons aid package to Taiwan worth up to $345 million last month.