Saudi Arabia replaced India as the largest buyer of defense equipment and weaponry worldwide in 2014, and the largest importer from the U.S., according to IHS Jane’s.
One out of every seven dollars spent on defense imports in 2015 will be spent by Saudi Arabia, the British military publication said.
Ben Moores, senior defence analyst at IHS Aerospace, Defence and Security, said that growth in Saudi Arabia “has been dramatic and, based on previous orders, these numbers are not going to slow down…When we look at the likely export addressable opportunities at a global level for the defence industry, five of the 10 leading countries are from the Middle East,” which Moores called “the biggest regional market and there are USD110 billion in opportunities in coming decade.”
Military leaders at a ceremony in Saudi Arabia last week.
The increase of spending on military equipment coincides with the rise of the self-described Islamic State, or Daesh, in Iraq and Syria that poses a threat to Saudi security and regional stability. It also comes as negotiations on regional rival Iran’s nuclear program reach a climax.
Saudi Arabia and the United States are coordinating directly in strikes against Daesh locations in Iraq and Syria, and the United States is assisting Saudi Arabia in training vetted fighters for Syria within Saudi Arabia’s borders.
In January, U.S. Senate Republican John McCain and a delegation of Senate Armed Services Committee members visited Saudi Arabia as part of a broad tour of the region to discuss American-Saudi joint efforts to back moderate Syrian rebels.
To the south, instability in Yemen is another security challenge for the Kingdom as Houthi forces recently ousted the Saudi-backed Prime Minister Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi in the capital.
