
Critics also point out that the UK’s decision intensifies its crimes in Yemen due to its continued arms sales worth billions to Saudi Arabia and its allies responsible for the war and destruction in the country

The demand to suspend arms sales to Saudi Arabia has gained widespread support in the UK and across party lines in the parliament following Joe Biden’s announcement for the same last week

Noam Chomsky and Vijay Prashad discuss the threats humanity and earth face today that require urgent attention

US sanctions against Russia and China have helped maintain its hegemony in the global arms trade with 12 of its companies featuring in the world’s top 25 arms producing and military service providers

The UK has supplied Saudi Arabia with at least 5.3 million British pounds worth of arms and ammunition since March 2015, when the Saudi-led coalition decided to militarily intervene in Yemen

According to the report published by international NGO, Oxfam, global military expenditure in 2019 stood at USD 1.9 trillion – an amount several times over what is required to pay for the UN-led efforts to fight the COVID-19 crisis in developing countries

Activists allege that the ship, Bahri Abha, is carrying weapons for use by Saudi Arabia in Yemen. Since 2015, the ship has transported military equipment worth €143 million on eight voyages from the United States to Saudi Arabia

According to the Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT), the British government had approved the sale of weapons and military equipment worth USD 17.8 million to Israel in 2018.