Denmark’s foreign minister, Anders Samuelsen announced this week Denmark will suspend its exportation of weapons to Saudi Arabia following the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and consistent human rights violations in Yemen.
Saudi Arabia is one of the largest weapons importers and is part of a military coalition waging war in Yemen, that has engaged in human rights violations.
“With the continued deterioration of the already terrible situation in Yemen and the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, we are now in a new situation," Samuelsen told journalists.
The suspension also includes dual-use technology that may have a military application.
This decision follows a meeting with fellow European foreign ministers which occurred on Thursday.
Germany has already suspended the export of future weapons licenses and intends to end all arms sales with the Saudis. Meanwhile, France had stated on Monday, that it will soon make a decision on sanctions.
The United States President Donald J Trump, however, has refused to blame the Saudi government for Khashoggi’s death and emphasised the importance of their trade relationship.
In a statement, he also made clear that the decision to not impose sanctions was in part motivated by Saudi Arabia’s opposition to Iran who Israel claims is “the world’s leading sponsor of terror”.
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