Sens. Cramer, Sullivan Introduce Legislation to Remove U.S. Armed Forces from Saudi Arabia

Statement

U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK), members of the Senate Armed Services Committee, introduced legislation this week to remove United States Armed Forces from Saudi Arabia.

"Saudi Arabia has shown indifference, if not malintent, for American energy producers during its feud with Russia. These are not the actions of a supposed ally or friend, and they will not be tolerated," said Senator Cramer. "U.S. troops are deployed to other countries to serve our national interests, not theirs. With friends like this, who needs enemies?"

"The United States has been a strong and reliable partner to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for decades," said Senator Sullivan. "That partnership has included a long history of helping to protect Saudi Arabia from threats in the region, including a recent surge in U.S. troop presence to protect the Kingdom and other countries from Iran. Such protections have helped stabilize the region and have served to defend American interests. Now, however, as the United States and the rest of the world are battling the COVID-19 pandemic, the Kingdom continues to reject its leadership role in serving as a stabilizing force for global energy markets. This is unacceptable, particularly because the Kingdom's actions are directly and negatively impacting the American citizens I am honored to represent. If Saudi Arabia refuses to change course when we've requested that it do so, the United States must seriously reconsider the level of American support -- including military support -- for such partnerships that fail to support us in turn."

The bill, S.3572, would remove all forces and equipment from Saudi Arabia and relocate them to another location in the Middle East.

This is the most recent move in Senators Cramer and Sullivan's efforts to urge Saudi Arabia to stop this oil dispute, which has caused significant, long-term harm to American energy producers.

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