Schuivende balans in de Perzische Golf

[Lex]

Bijna clash tussen schepen VS en Iran 
 
WASHINGTON -  Een Amerikaans marineschip heeft maandag in de Perzische Golf waarschuwingssignalen gestuurd richting een Iraanse oorlogsbodem. Dat heeft een medewerker van de Amerikaanse marine woensdag tegen verscheidene Amerikaanse media gezegd.

Het Iraanse oorlogschip, met de wapens paraat, naderde de Amerikaanse USS Mahan tot 900 meter, waarop de Amerikanen lichtsignalen uitzonden en een vuurpijl richting het Iraanse schip stuurde. Het Amerikaanse schip veranderde van koers om een botsing te voorkomen.

Het is de tweede keer dat de USS Mahan verwikkeld is in een incident met een Iraans schip. In januari vuurde het vaartuig waarschuwingsschoten af in de straat van Hormuz.

Telegraaf, 26-04-2017, 10:14

[dudge]

Lijkt er steeds meer op dat we rekening moeten gaan houden met een aktieve/assertieve houding van de as Riyad-Cairo.

Nouja, laat ze maar. Ik betwijfel of we er echt slechter van kunnen worden, en misschien leid het de implosie van SA wel in, met mogelijk een kleinere rol voor Salafisme, lijkt me prima.

[Mourning]

Lijkt er steeds meer op dat we rekening moeten gaan houden met een aktieve/assertieve houding van de as Riyad-Cairo.

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Duitse inlichtingen: Saudi-Arabië plant nieuwe militaire acties

door Emile Kossen   | 2 dec 2015

Het lijkt er niet op dat de situatie in het Midden-Oosten in de nabije toekomst stabieler wordt. Saudi-Arabië kijkt met wantrouwen naar de grotere rol van Iran en zou overwegen militaire acties uit te voeren in verschillende Arabische landen.
 
Daarvoor waarschuwt de Duitse inlichtingendienst BND in een rapport dat woensdag verscheen, melden Duitse media. In het rapport wordt Saudi-Arabië een bedreiging genoemd voor de stabiliteit in de Arabische wereld.

'Leider van de Arabische wereld'

Saudi-Arabië kent veel interne problemen en wil een agressief buitenlandbeleid voeren om die te verbloemen. Volgens de BND wil de soennitische staat als 'de leider van de Arabische wereld' worden gezien.

'De huidige voorzichtige houding van de koninklijke familie zal worden vervangen door een impulsief interventiebeleid', voorspelt het rapport. Een van de redenen daarvoor is de aanstelling van de nieuwe minister van defensie, de zoon van Koning Salman, die zich graag zou willen bewijzen als daadkrachtige troonopvolger.

Iran

De grootste drijfveer van de Saudi's zijn echter ontwikkelingen bij de sjiitische aartsvijand Iran. De Islamitische Republiek speelt een steeds grotere rol in het Syrische conflict en is bovendien weer deels geaccepteerd door de internationale gemeenschap na het sluiten van een atoomdeal.

Saudi-Arabië zou zich bedreigd voelen door zijn 'religieus-ideologische vijand' en de invloed in het Midden-Oosten willen verdedigen. Dat doen de Saudi's al door te vechten tegen Houthi-rebellen in Jemen, maar de inlichtingendienst noemt ook potentiële militaire acties in Syrië, Libanon, Irak en Bahrein.

Momenteel steunt Saudi-Arabië in Syrië rebellengroepen met grote hoeveelheden wapens. Hoofddoel is om Assad te verslaan, omdat zijn regime sterke banden heeft met Iran.

http://www.elsevier.nl/Buitenland/achtergrond/2015/12/Duitse-inlichtingendienst-Saudi-Arabie-plant-nieuwe-militaire-acties-2727267W/

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

U.S. to Announce $10 Billion Arms Sale in Middle East

By Gopal Ratnam - Apr 19, 2013.

The Obama administration is to announce a $10 billion arms package to Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates that will be the centerpiece of Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel's visit the countries next week, according to a U.S. official.

The arms sold to Israel will include an unspecified number of V-22 Osprey tiltrotor transport aircraft, precision strike missiles, air defense radar and KC-35 refueling tankers; the UAE is likely to buy 26 F-16 jet fighters, and the Persian Gulf nation as well as Saudi Arabia will each buy precision missiles, said the official who provided the details on the condition of anonymity ahead of the deal's announcement.

If the transaction goes through it will be the first foreign sale of the V-22 tiltrotor made by Boeing Co. (BA) and Textron Inc.'s Bell Helicopter unit. The UAE already ordered 80 F-16s made by Lockheed Martin Corp. in the late 1990s, and Saudi Arabia operates a fleet of Boeing-made F-15 jets. Details of the make and model of the precision strike missile and air defense radar weren't immediately available.

The announcement of an arms package to allies in the Middle East comes as Hagel readies his first trip to the region since taking his Cabinet post in February. The weapons sales will be a centerpiece of the visit, the U.S. official said.

Iran, Syria

At a broader level Hagel's visit to Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and UAE is likely to be focused on the threats to the region from Iran and Syria, said Aaron David Miller, a Middle East specialist at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington.

In Israel, Hagel "has to make clear on the psychological and emotional side that he gets it that they're in a very dangerous and uncertain neighborhood," Miller said in a telephone interview before details of the arms sales surfaced.

To that end the announcement of additional arms deal with Israel is likely to be a highlight of Hagel's meetings with his counterpart Moshe Yaalon, as well as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The deal also underscores President Barack Obama's comments last month in Israel that the Jewish state must have the capacity to defend itself against potential threats from Iran, which is suspected of developing nuclear weapons, and from Syria, which has chemical weapons.

The Obama administration also has funded Israel's Iron Dome system, designed to shoot down short-range rockets. In its 2014 budget request the Pentagon sought $220 million to buy additional batteries of the missile defense system for Israel. If approved by Congress, that spending will be on top of the $486 million the U.S. has added for the system in recent years.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has been a long-time buyer of U.S. armaments and operates a significant American-made arsenal.

In 2010, in one of the largest arms-sales to date, the U.S. announced a deal with Saudi Arabia valued at $30 billion that included 84 Boeing-made F-15 jets and 72 UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters built by United Technologies Corp.

Last year, the U.S. proposed selling to Saudi Arabia a fleet of 20 C-130J military transport planes, five KC-130J refueling aircraft and related equipment from Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT) valued at about $6.7 billion.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-04-19/u-s-to-announce-10-billion-arms-sale-in-middle-east.html

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Iraq seen as major arms buyer by 2020

The Iraqi government is spending billions of dollars to restore the country's military power, largely destroyed under Saddam Hussein, but analysts believe arms purchases won't peak until 2020.

The Iraqi government is spending billions of dollars to restore the country's military power but analysts say arms purchases won't peak until 2020.

And Baghdad, angry about the slow delivery of U.S. weapons systems, may well switch the emphasis of its procurement program to Russia, the Czech Republic and possibly even China, to speed up amassing firepower for its military forces.

Oxford Analytica observed in a new assessment Wednesday that the United States, hitherto post-Saddam Hussein Iraq's main arms supplier, "will face stiffer international competition from Russian, Former Soviet Union, European and Asians arms vendors in coming years."

"Iraq is unlikely to represent a very large opportunity for defense sales until it has met more pressing spending commitments and increased the government's capacity to raise and spend larger investment budgets," Oxford Analytica observed in an assessment published Wednesday.

Oil-rich Iraq "will only become a very lucrative defense market after 2020, when it could be one of the top opportunities in the global defense sector."

The government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki will showcase Iraq's resurgent military during an Army Day parade Sunday as it continues to negotiate a $5.2 billion arms package from Russia and the Czech Republic, unveiled Oct. 9 when Maliki visited Moscow.

This marked a major shift from U.S. weapons systems, which have dominated postwar military procurement since it got under way in 2005.

The United States has either delivered or is evaluating arms sales to Iraq totaling $19 billion. These include 36 Lockheed Martin F-16IQ Block 52 fighter jets, enough for two squadrons.

The F-16s will be new Iraqi air force's first combat aircraft and will be equipped with advanced missile and laser-guided bomb systems. Baghdad's Defense Ministry says it wants 96 of the jets spread over four orders. The first batch is expected to be operational by 2015.

Lockheed Martin delivered the third of six C-130J Super Hercules Transports to Iraq in mid-December. The others are scheduled for delivery this year.

The transports are part of a $10 billion arms signed in August 2008 that also includes 25 Bell attack helicopters armed with Lockheed Martin laser-guided AGM-114 Hellfire missiles, 140 upgraded Abrams main battle tanks built by General Dynamics Land Systems and 160 Guardian armored security vehicles manufactured by Textron Marine and Land Systems.

The $4.2 billion Russian deal involves an unspecified number of MiG-29M/M2 interceptors, 30 Mil Mi-28N all-weather, anti-armor attack helicopters and 42 Pantsir S-1 air-defense missile systems.

Maliki is also reported to have signed up to buy 28 L-159 Alca advanvec trainer/light attack aircraft built by the Czech Republic's Aero Vodochody when he visited Prague in October.

That deal is worth an estimated $1 billion, although both the Russian and Czech agreements apparently remain unsigned despite October reports they'd been wrapped up.

There has been wide speculation that Maliki is using the threat of major arms deals with Moscow and Prague to prod the Americans to meet his repeated demand to accelerate delivery of the U.S. systems he has ordered.

Under the first F-16 contract in 2009, Washington agreed to deliver the initial batch of 18 jets by March 2011. This was postponed to March 2013.

These complaints, which Arab sources say have become quite strident, are linked to concerns in Baghdad that it may have to engage in combat with independence-minded Kurds in northern Iraq.

That may have been why the Americans delayed the first F-16 delivery, because they don't want to see Iraq, which neighbors Iran and Saudi Arabia, fragment into sectarian fiefdoms.

Deliveries of the Abrams under a $900 million deal are also lagging.

In this regard, the Czech L-159 aircraft would be ideal for counter-insurgency operations against Kurdistan's famed Peshmerga fighters.

Presumably, Baghdad could accelerate its military procurement program if major internal fighting erupts, and analysts suspect it may go for Russian T-90 tanks which Moscow tried to sell Maliki in October.

Oxford Analytica says Maliki is keen to diversify military purchases "away from excessive reliance on the United States."

Iraq "seeks to achieve 'strategic independence' between 2016 and 2020, when it aims to be able to defend its international borders without external support.

"Yet in reality, Iraqi military power will remain anemic compared to its neighbors until at least 2025."

Source: BAGHDAD, UPI News – 4 January 2013

http://xairforces.net/newsd.asp?newsid=2025&newst=5

[KapiteinRob]

Ook in Duitsland hypocriet gehuil, want ze kopen wel olie bij die mensenrechten schendende arabieren.....

[Lex]

Saudi-Arabië wil Duitse legervoertuigen kopen

BERLIJN - Saudi-Arabië wil 30 pantservoertuigen van Duitsland kopen. Dat meldde de Duitse krant Bild am Sonntag zondag. Volgens de krant is er een principeafspraak over de verkoop van de 30 voertuigen van het type Dingo II. Op de lange termijn willen de Saudiërs er nog eens 100 bestellen. De Bundessicherheitsrat, een commissie van de Duitse regering die toestemming moet geven voor de export van wapentuig, heeft nog niet definitief met de leverantie ingestemd.

De verkoop is controversieel, omdat er veel twijfels zijn over de bescherming van de mensenrechten in Saudi-Arabië. Eerder deze maand onthulde het weekblad Der Spiegel dat Saudi-Arabië enkele honderden pantservoertuigen van het type Boxer wilde bestellen. De mogelijke leverantie stuitte op veel oppositie in Duitsland.

De Dingo's, die moeten helpen bij de opsporing van nucleaire, biologische en chemische wapens, moeten de 36 voertuigen van het type Fuchs vervangen die het Duitse bedrijf Thyssen in 1991 aan het Arabische land heeft geleverd. Met de aanschaf wil Saudi-Arabië toegerust zijn voor een mogelijke aanval van Iran.

In 2011 exporteerde Duitsland voor 30 miljoen euro aan wapens naar Saudi-Arabië, waaronder munitie voor mortieren en granaatwerpers.

Telegraaf,
zo 30 dec 2012, 07:52

[Elzenga]

Iets met Copyright, wederom?

Lex
Algeheel beheerder

Misschien nog eens opnieuw aangeven dat alle sites van the Gannett Company dit copyright probleem geven?!

[Lex]

France, U.S. Work Toward Saudi Navy Deals

http://www.defensenews.com/article/20121029/DEFREG01/310290004/France-U-S-Work-Toward-Saudi-Navy-Deals?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

Iets met Copyright, wederom?

Lex
Algeheel beheerder

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Last updated:November 19, 2012

Gulf states plan fresh arms spending

By Michael Peel and Camilla Hall in Abu Dhabi

Gulf states are planning a fresh round of big arms buys from US and European manufacturers, as they replace old equipment and respond to the perceived threat of Iran and other regional security concerns.

A recent flurry of requests to Washington for new or updated missile systems suggest Arabian peninsula countries are seeking to build a tougher military shield against Iran in case of an attack by Israel or the US, analysts say.

Demand from the Gulf has triggered high-level commercial lobbying as western countries compete to win multi-billion dollar contracts for their companies amid an uncertain regional security backdrop.

"The US major defence industries, IT firms, integration systems – they all have an enormous opportunity," says William Cohen, a former Republican senator who served as secretary of defence under Democratic president Bill Clinton and now advises US businesses.

"There is a very legitimate concern about Iran being a revolutionary country. Beyond Iran, you have terrorism, cyber attack threats...you see the implications of the Arab spring. Every country wants to make sure it's protected against that."

Since November 2, the US Congress has been notified of four separate requests for arms buys – some of them years in the preparation – by Gulf countries, totalling $24.2bn. The deals include transport aircraft for Saudi Arabia, a $9.9bn Patriot missile system for Qatar and high altitude area defence missiles for the United Arab Emirates.

Lockheed Martin and Raytheon of the US are the main beneficiaries of the proposed contracts, which are pitched to Congress as support for important Washington-allied states in the region.

Willy Moore, Lockheed Martin's regional president for the Middle East, says the Middle East and Africa region is the company's fastest-growing in terms of sales, with deal-making driven by tensions between the Gulf states and Tehran.

"There's no question that countries out here are looking to the threat coming from Iran," he says, adding that he doesn't think the Arab spring is a big driver behind the latest plans.

European companies are also seeking big contracts in the region. David Cameron, British prime minister, used a Gulf visit this month to push for sales of more than 100 warplanes to Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Oman. Paris has lobbied hard for deals, competing with London by proposing to provide the UAE with more than 60 Rafale fighter jets.

The latest round of proposed deals comes after heavy Gulf state activity in the international arms markets last year, according to a report by the Congressional Research Service for US lawmakers. The value of US agreements to supply weapons to emerging nations more than doubled from $32.7bn in 2010 to $71.5bn in 2011, with Saudi Arabia's $33.7bn of agreements leading the way, the research said.

Jeremy Binnie, Middle East and Africa editor of Jane's Defence Weekly magazine, said the size of the latest proposed US-Gulf deals and the focus on missile systems – including a $4.2bn deal with Kuwait earlier this year – was "obviously aimed at countering the ballistic missile threat emanating from Iran."

"Ultimately the idea is that all this stuff will plug into each other to form a regional missile shield," he added, although he noted it was still unclear to what extent the Gulf countries were co-operating with each other, or how their enhanced capabilities would fit in with the US alliance with Israel.

Analysts say that with the Gulf countries bunched so close together, a broader regional anti-missile system, backed by the US, would allow whoever had the best shot to take it first.

The fate of the proposed Gulf arms buys may cast broader light on the evolving geopolitics of the region, where the petrostates are building closer relationships with big Asian oil and gas consumers but still look to the US for security guarantees.

While the US military is still the world's dominant military power, Washington has been keen to reduce or share security responsibilities where it can – such as during the Nato action in Libya last year.

James Hackett, an analyst at the International Institute of Strategic Studies think-tank, said the latest Gulf arms deal Congressional notifications were in line with a longstanding US policy of so-called multi-bilateralism – that is, using bilateral deals to make a multilateral impact on regional security.

"The US sees this notably in areas like shared early warning, air and missile defence," said Mr Hackett, noting that both the Qatari and UAE announcements relating the proposed acquisition of so-called THAAD anti-missile systems had said the deals would "reduce dependence on US forces".

The planned Gulf purchases are likely add to concerns by anti-conflict campaigners about the militarisation of the Middle East, as war deepens in Syria, where Russia sold $1bn of weapons last year to the regime and Qatari and Saudi Arabia arms are being channelled to the rebels.

Five Arab countries are now among the world's top 10 most militarised nations in terms of spending as a percentage of gross domestic product, according to a report published this month by the Bonn International Centre for Conversion, a German research institute. Jan Grebe, project leader at the centre, said the results signalled "the development of a regional arms race".

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2012.

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

France, U.S. Work Toward Saudi Navy Deals

Oct. 29, 2012    
By PIERRE TRAN and CHRISTOPHER P. CAVAS  

The Saudi Al Madinah-class frigate Al Taif sails in the southern Red Sea in January. (Australian Department of Defence)

PARIS — A contract worth around 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion) to overhaul the Saudi Navy's French-built F-2000 frigates and oilers is considered close, but there are concerns over government guarantees, sources familiar with the deal said.


http://www.defensenews.com/article/20121029/DEFREG01/310290004/France-U-S-Work-Toward-Saudi-Navy-Deals?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

[IPA NG]

Hoeveel leo´s staan er totaal in depot bij de KL, 200 of 300?

445 - 114(Oostenrijk) - 100 (Canada) - 52 (Noorwegen) - 37 (Portugal) = 142
Nu zullen het er wel iets minder zijn maar het zijn er in ieder geval 100 want die wilden de Indonesiërs kopen.

Ik heb ook het idee dat er nog ergens 10 tot 13 Leopard 1V's staan.

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Washington's nervous Gulf allies seeking more firepower as tensions with Iran grow

By Brian Murphy, The Associated PressJuly 30, 2012

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - While Iran's military loudly trumpets every new project or purported advance in hopes of rattling the U.S. and its Gulf Arab allies, the U.S. is quietly answering with an array of proposed arms sales across the region as part of a wider effort to counter Tehran.

In the past two months, the Defence Department has notified Congress of possible deals totalling more than $11.3 billion to Gulf states such as Qatar and Kuwait, which are seen as some of America's critical front-line partners in containing Iran and protecting oil shipping lanes.

The proposed sales — including Patriot missile batteries and Apache attack helicopters — are still modest compared with massive Gulf purchases such as Saudi Arabia's $60 billion package last year. That deal included more than 80 new F-15SA fighter jets, missiles, radar warning systems and other equipment.

But the recent flurry of expected sales from U.S. firms, approved by the Pentagon and outlined in notifications to Congress, underscores the growing emphasis among nervous Gulf states on seeking quick upgrades to existing firepower and defensive networks.

The arms sale need congressional approval, but usually few objections are raised for key allies such as Gulf nations.

Gulf worries about possible military action against Iran have increased with diplomatic efforts making little headway in easing the showdown over Tehran's nuclear program, which the West and others fear could eventually develop atomic weapons. Iran says it only seeks reactors for energy and medical uses.

An Israeli newspaper, Haaretz, reported Sunday that National Security Adviser Tom Donilon briefed Israeli officials on possible U.S. attack plans if diplomacy and sanctions fail to pressure Tehran to scale back its nuclear enrichment program. A senior Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential talks, denied the Haaretz report.

The news reports reflect the uncertainties in the region with negotiations nearly stalled and Iran trying to push back against deepening sanctions on its vital oil exports.

"There was a bit of a breather in the region when (nuclear) talks resumed," said Bruno Tertrais, senior researcher at the Foundation for Strategic Research in Paris. "That is quickly fading."

In its place: a sense of military adjustments moving at a faster pace.

Washington plans to keep at least 13,500 troops in Kuwait — down slightly from the current 15,000 — but with an expanded mission as a potential rapid-reaction force for the region. The Pentagon also has scores of warplanes and other assets across the Gulf, including air bases in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

At sea, the U.S. Navy plans to lead manoeuvrs in September that include minesweeping drills — a clear response to Iran's threats to block oil tankers from passing through the Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Gulf in retaliation for the tightening Western sanctions.

The U.S. is also boosting its Gulf flotilla, directed by the Navy's 5th Fleet in Bahrain. Among the additions: a floating assault base aboard the retrofitted USS Ponce and accelerated deployment of the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis to ensure two carriers are in the Gulf region at all times.

"We are seeing more and more bluster from the Iranian side and the U.S. and Gulf allies showing the Iranians they are a united front," said Theodore Karasik, a regional security expert at the Dubai-based Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis. "The Gulf states are nervous. They show this nervousness by buying more weapons."

Among the proposed U.S. sales is a $4.2 billion package to Kuwait for 60 Patriot missiles and related systems to "strengthen its homeland defence and deter regional threats," the Defence Department said in a statement. Kuwait could also buy, pending congressional approval, a $49 million arsenal of 300 Hellfire II missiles, which can be launched from helicopters or drones.

For Qatar — which hosts one of the Pentagon's command hubs — the Defence Department is seeking clearance for a $6.6 billion air support upgrade that includes 24 AH-64D Apache attack helicopters, 12 Blackhawk helicopters and 22 Seahawk helicopters, with options to buy six more.

The Apaches would assist with "protection of key oil and infrastructure and platforms which are vital to U.S. and Western economic interests," the Defence Department said.

Oman, which shares control of Hormuz with Iran, is seeking an $86 million purchase that includes 55 Sidewinder missiles as part of plans to upgrade its F-16 fighter fleet.

For decades, the Gulf had looked mostly to Washington for its weapons, but European arms deals also appear on the rise.

In Berlin, German government spokesman Georg Streiter said Monday there has been an "expression of interest" by Qatar in about 200 Leopard II tanks. A similar Leopard tank deal with Saudi Arabia was reported last year by German media.

In May, Saudi Arabia signed a $3 billion deal with Britain for air force training planes apparently linked to a 2007 agreement to buy 72 Eurofighter Typhoon fighters.

The weapons requests also reinforce the toughening stance against Iran by main rival Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf Arab states. The six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council has repeatedly warned Tehran about "meddling" in Gulf affairs. Saudi Arabia and Qatar have taken a leading role in supporting Syrian rebels trying to topple Bashar Assad's regime, which is Iran's main Mideast ally.

Last week, a commander of Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guards warned that "hated Arab" rivals could face repercussions for their efforts to bring down Assad.

Although the Gulf Arab states have no direct ties to Israel, any military strike on Iran by the Jewish state could require some degree of co-ordination, with Washington likely to play an intermediary role. Gulf military forces also could be quickly drawn into a wider conflict or a confrontation over the Strait of Hormuz, the passageway for one-fifth of the world's oil.

"Amid the standoff between Iran, Israel and the West, there's another side that is often overlooked," said Sami al-Faraj, director of the Kuwait Center for Strategic Studies. "It is the Gulf states. They are the ones caught in the middle."

Read more: http://www.theprovince.com/news/world/Washingtons+nervous+Gulf+allies+seeking+more+firepower+tensions+with/7012347/story.html#ixzz228HyaMM0

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Saudis are buying nuclear-capable missiles from China

DEBKAfile  Exclusive Report  July 4

debkafile's military sources report that Saudi Arabia has set its feet on the path to a nuclear weapon capability and is negotiating in Beijng the purchase of Chinese nuclear-capable Dong-Fen 21 ((NATO-codenamed CSS-5) ballistic missile.

China, which has agreed to the transaction in principle, would also build a base of operations near Riyadh for the new Saudi purchases.
As we reported last year, Saudi Arabia has struck a deal with Pakistan for the availability on demand of a nuclear warhead from Islamabad's arsenal for fitting onto a ballistic missile.
Riyadh owns a direct interest in the two most active Middle East issues: Iran and Syria.
Iran's nuclear weapons program has been advancing for two decades regardless of countless attempts at restraint by every diplomatic tool under the sun and a rising scale of sanctions – to no avail.
Tehran marches on regardless of impediments. In Istanbul, Tuesday, July 3, the six powers and Iran failed the fourth attempt to reach an accommodation on Iran's nuclear program.
The Syrian ruler Bashar Assad remains equally undeterred by international condemnation. Saturday, June 30, the US and Russia again failed to agree on a joint plan of action in Syria.
Saudi forces have been poised for action in Syria on the Jordanian and Iraqi borders since US Secretary of State Leon Panetta visited Riyadh in late June.

On July 1, they redoubled their military preparedness when the European Union clamped down an oil embargo on Iran. The Saudis, the US Fifth Fleet and the entire Gulf region are since braced for Iranian reprisals which could come in the form of closure by Tehran of the vital Straits of Hormuz to shipping or strikes against the Gulf emirates' oil exporting facilities.
Tension shot up again when Iran's Revolutionary Guards launched a three-day missile drill against simulated enemy bases in the region – expanding its threats to include US forces and bases in the region, Israel and Turkey.

http://www.debka.com/article/22155/Saudis-are-buying-nuclear-capable-missiles-from-China