The German coalition government has again authorized the export of military equipment to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, in view of the need to consolidate a favorable energy agreement with the Gulf nations.

German arms export permits to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia had been suspended since 2018, following their involvement in the war in Yemen and the brutal murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi, which took place in the Saudi Arabian embassy in Turkey.

According to the Spiegel newspaper, the deliveries to Saudi Arabia and the Emirates were approved a few days before Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s trip to the Gulf region, where he is seeking to establish commercial agreements, focused on hydrocarbon imports, that will help Germany meet its energy needs, severely depleted after the end of the Nord Stream pipeline operations.

Robert Habeck, the German Economy Minister, has now confirmed in a letter to the Bundestag that several agreements had been approved by the Chancellor and his top ministers shortly before the trip.

Spare parts and armament for Eurofighter and Tornado

Habeck’s letter contains a complete list of export licenses approved by the Federal Security Council. The export authorizations for Saudi Arabia relate to European armament projects in which German industry is involved.

For example, the Saudis can purchase equipment and armament parts for the Eurofighter Typhoon and Panavia Tornado fighter aircrafts from German companies for 36.1 million euros.

Spare parts for the fleet of Airbus A330 MRTT multirole tanker/transport aircraft, worth 2.8 million euros, would also be supplied.

See also: The White A330 MRTT: a subtle message from Airbus to the region

The Russian invasion of Ukraine is reshuffling the global political chessboard, bringing closer positions that until very recently seemed irreconcilable.