Trump vetoes measure blocking arms sales to Saudi Arabia, UAE
WASHINGTON _ President Donald Trump vetoed three bipartisan measures passed by Congress intended to block arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the White House said in a statement.
"This resolution would weaken America's global competitiveness and damage the important relationships we share with our allies and partners," Trump said in a message to lawmakers released by the White House on Wednesday.
With his third veto _ and second related to Saudi Arabia _ Trump again rebuffed congressional efforts to punish Saudi Arabia for the killing of columnist Jamal Khashoggi and turned back criticism over the kingdom's prosecution of its war against Houthi rebels in Yemen.
In April, Trump vetoed a resolution backed by Republicans and Democrats in both chambers of Congress that would withdraw U.S. support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen. Trump issued his first veto earlier this year of a measure aimed at ending his national emergency declaration used to fund a wall along the southern border.
This latest dispute over Saudi arms sales dates to late May when the administration cited a national emergency under the Arms Export Control Act to overrule congressional objections to $8.1 billion in arms sales. That decision has been the subject of House and Senate hearings in which lawmakers of both parties questioned the administration citing tensions with Iran as a national emergency.
_Bloomberg News
