Germany’s foreign minister criticized the U.S. arms package for the Middle East.
“A military buildup is hardly the best solution to the unstable situation in the Middle East,” Frank-Walter Steinmeier said in Thursday’s edition of the German daily Handelsblatt, according to a Reuters report. “We think that a political dialogue with all of the actors in the region is the way to go.”
The United States this week announced a package that would include $30 billion in defense assistance to Israel and $13 billion to Egypt over 10 years, and a $20 billion arms sale to Saudi Arabia and its Persian Gulf neighbors. The sale is aimed at promoting a united front against Iran and enticing Saudi Arabia into backing the latest U.S.-led Israeli-Palestinian peace effort.
