BICOM

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman had lunch with Queen Elizabeth II and met with Prime Minister Theresa May yesterday, as part of his high profile three-day visit to London.
At Prime Minister’s Questions yesterday the Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn accused the government of “colluding” in war crimes in Yemen but the Prime Minister’s spokesman said “We’re not involved in carrying out strikes, directing or conducting operations, or involved in the targeting decision making process.”

May said she would raise concerns about Saudi Arabia’s human rights record and the ongoing war in Yemen during her meeting with Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. In the House of Commons she said: “This vindicates the engagement that we have with Saudi Arabia, to be able to sit down with them. Their involvement in Yemen came at the request of the legitimate government of the Yemen, it is backed by the United Nations Security Council and as such we support it.” In a statement following the meeting, Downing Street said she had offered assistance to “progress and intensify these reforms, particularly on women’s rights, and on universal human rights”.

According to the BBC, the government hopes to capitalise on the Kingdom’s efforts to diversify its economy, with a £65bn mutual trade deal thought to be in the pipeline.

Saudi Arabia is a key trade partner for the UK, with arms sales totalling £4.6bn per year. The Crown Prince will have another meeting with the Prime Minister and her team today at Chequers, her official residence in Buckinghamshire.