During the presidency of Barack Obama, the United States began providing Saudi Arabia with critical support to "sustain" the Saudi Arabian–led intervention in the Yemeni Civil War, later expanded during the presidency of Donald Trump. This support included logistical and intelligence aid. Trump vetoed a bipartisan bill in 2019 aimed at stopping U.S. support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen. In 2021, Joe Biden vowed to halt U.S. support for the war, though U.S. arms sales to the coalition have continued.
From 2015 to 2019, Saudi Arabia was reportedly the largest importer of U.S. arms.
Background
The ongoing Yemeni Civil War began in September 2014, when Houthi forces took over the capital city of Sanaa. The incident was followed by a rapid Houthi takeover of the government. On 21 March 2015, the Houthi-led Supreme Revolutionary Committee declared a general mobilization to overthrow Yemeni president Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, and expand their control by driving into southern provinces. By 25 March, Lahij fell to the Houthis and they reached the outskirts of Aden, the seat of power for Hadi's government. Hadi fled the country the same day.
A coalition led by Saudi Arabia launched military operations by using air strikes to restore the former Yemeni government. The United States has provided intelligence and logistical support for the Saudi-led campaign, which continues despite the Biden administration's pledges to withdraw U.S. support for Saudi Arabia in the Yemeni Civil War.
Timeline
Obama administration
President Barack Obama said in March 2015 that he has authorized U.S. soldiers to give logistical and intelligence aid to the Saudis in their military action in Yemen, launching a "Joint Planning Cell" with Saudi Arabia. This support involves aerial refueling, which allows coalition aircraft to spend more time over Yemen, and allowing some coalition members to home base aircraft instead of transferring them to Saudi Arabia.
During the Obama Administration, The United States has also been criticised for allegedly supplying cluster munitions to Saudi Arabian forces. Cluster munitions are often considered unacceptable due their largely indiscriminate function and high risk of unexploded munitions. The United States is not party to the Cluster Munition Coalition, which bans the use of Cluster munitions. Human Rights Watch argued in August 2016 that the United States' direct support of the Saudi forces, in particular in providing intelligence and in-air refueling has made it a party to the conflict.
On 13 October 2016, the fired Tomahawk missiles against Houthi-controlled radar installations "in the Dhubab district of Taiz province, a remote area overlooking the Bab al-Mandab Straight known for fishing and smuggling."
Trump administration
On 29 January 2017, the first United States raid authorised by President Donald Trump ended in multiple civilian deaths, including the death of Anwar al-Awlaki's eight-year-old daughter. According to the Guardian, the raid had been planned under the Obama administration, but it had been thought that the underlying intelligence did not justify the risks involved in carrying out the raid. Colonel John Thomas, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command stated that the United States military forces were neither aware of the presence of Nawar al-Awlaki in the compound, nor that any of the estimated 14 people killed in the raid were civilians.
U.S. support for the Saudi-led coalition was expanded during the presidency of Donald Trump, who "announced plans to increase training for the Saudi air force," and according to a 2020 report, "authorized $27.4bn in U.S. arms sales to Saudi Arabia during his first three years in office." Trump's administrator's deal with Saudi Arabia included precision-guided bombs to Saudi Arabia and the upgrade of its F-15 aircraft, which U.S supplies.
Trump vetoed a bipartisan bill in April 2019 that sought to stop U.S. backing for the Saudi-led military involvement and the United States Senate failed to overturn the veto with 53 votes instead of the 67 required.
In June 2019, US secretary of state Mike Pompeo, blocked the inclusion of Saudi Arabia on the US list of countries that recruit child soldiers, dismissing State department experts' findings.