Yemen war powers resolution scuttled

The Senate scuttled a resolution opposed by the Trump administration that called on the US military to stop aiding the Saudiled Arab coalition in Yemen, acting the same day President Donald Trump and top lawmakers met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman.

The 55-44 vote Tuesday shelves the measure indefinitely.

Defence Secretary James Mattis met privately with Senate Republicans to oppose the measure hours before the vote.

The administration contended the resolution could damage US-Saudi relations as the two countries seek to develop an increasingly close partnership on issues such as isolating Iran and bolstering business ties.

The resolution sought to remove US assistance from the fighting between a coalition led by Saudi Arabia and Iran-backed Al Houthi militants in Yemen.

Since 2015, the US has provided the Saudi-led air campaign in Yemen with airto-air refuelling, intelligence assessments and other military advice.

In a letter to Senate leaders last month, defence officials said the president has the authority to direct the US actions because they don’t count as “hostilities” under the war powers resolution approved after the September 11 attacks.

Removing US forces “could call into question the statutory authority for ongoing US counterterrorism operations in Yemen,” wrote William Castle, acting general counsel of the Defence Department.

Prince Mohammad on Sunday defended his country’s involvement in Yemen at the outset of a three-week US tour. He said Al Houthis have launched missiles, smuggled in by Iran, at Riyadh, and that the US wouldn’t tolerate comparable attacks on its cities from, for example, Mexico.