Washington DC, July 18: The US House of Representatives has on Wednesday voted to block “emergency” arms sales to Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
According to ANI news reports, the three measures which the House has approved were passed by the US Senate earlier which implies the resolutions will now head to the desk of US President Donald Trump, where he is likely to veto them all.
The House has endorsed two of the measures with 231-190 votes in favour. The another, the third one, was endorsed with 237-190 votes, as per The Hill news reports.
Lawmakers have expressed their discontent through the votings with the Trump-led US government’s move to invoke an “emergency” supplying of the Arms Export Control Act in order to complete the arms sales to those three nations to counteract Iran’s threat in the Middle East.
The emergency permits the Trump administration to complete its arms sale worth USD 8.1 billion through bypassing the US Congress.
In April, Trump had vetoed US Congress resolution to end American military presence and involvement in the Yemen civil war.
However, the development holds a significance as the US was involved in a dangerous standoff.
Earlier, US Democrats cautioned the Trump administration was preparing to bypass Congress and approve a crucial new arms sale to Saudi Arabia, using an “emergency” loophole.
American arms control law enables Congress to dismiss weapon sales of international nations but an exemption in arms law enables the president to waive the arms assistance for US congressional approval by declaring a state of a national security emergency.