Saudi Arabia, UAE bolster militaries with former US military brass: Report

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have sought to improve their domestic militaries with the aid of hundreds of former US military veterans, including generals and admirals, according to a pair of recently published reports.

The UAE, in particular, was described as "the hottest overseas job market for retired U.S. service members," with 280 military retirees seeking US approval to work for Abu Dhabi, the Washington Post reported Tuesday. That is "far more" requests than for any other country, it said.

The Post obtained the records under what is known as the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, which allows the public, including news media, to seek official government records.

Among those who have sought official approval from the State Department and the Pentagon are former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis who consulted with the UAE before he assumed the top post at the Defense Department.

The 280 military retirees are only part of the total US military contractors who work with Abu Dhabi. Retirees are veterans who left the US military after serving for at least 20 years and receive a pension. Other veterans who may have served shorter times in the military before taking on foreign consulting work would not be counted in the Post's total.

The senior military officials have, however, helped the UAE develop what is considered one of the most formidable militaries in the region. The Gulf Arab country is also the world's third-largest buyer of US military equipment behind Saudi Arabia and Australia, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Yousef Al Otaiba, the Emirates' envoy to Washington, acknowledged the role the US has played in his country's military development, saying that over the past five decades "no country has played as important a role in the UAE’s progress and security as the United States."

"We have tapped into US expertise in virtually every area to build know how, to develop our economy and to advance and protect our society," he said in an emailed statement to the Post.

In Saudi Arabia, the newspaper counted 15 retired generals and admirals who have sought approval from the State and Defense departments to work as paid consultants for the Kingdom since 2016.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the man who US intelligence determined ordered the killing of the Post's former contributor Jamal Khashoggi, is the head of Saudi Arabia's Defense Ministry.

Marine Gen. James Jones, a top national security aide to former President Barack Obama, and retired Army Gen. Keith Alexander, Obama's and George W. Bush's National Security Agency chief, are among those who have worked with Riyadh's Defense Ministry.