Saudi Arabia will not rule out building or acquiring nuclear weapons, the country’s ambassador to the United States indicated.
Asked in an interview with US news channel CNN on whether Saudi Arabia would ever build nuclear weapons, Adel Al-Jubeir said the subject was “not something we would discuss publicly,” World Bulletin reported.
Pressed later on the issue, he said, “This is not something that I can comment on, nor would I comment on.”
According to The Independent, the ambassador’s reticence to rule out a military nuclear program may reignite concerns that the world’s largest oil producer has eyes on a nuclear arsenal.
The Saudi Arabian regime already possesses medium-range ballistic missiles in the form of the Royal Saudi Strategic Missile Force. The kingdom also reportedly has advanced nuclear expertise in the form of a civilian nuclear program.
This is while it was announced on June 24 that Saudi Arabia will buy $12 billion worth of weapons systems and nuclear technologies from France.
Saudi Arabia spent $67 billion on weapons in 2013 and a projected $80 billion in 2014. With its war against Yemen, that spending could well exceed $100 billion in 2015.
Since 2000, the amount spent by the Saudis on weapon systems, training and defensive infrastructure may well approach $1 trillion.
