Typhoon jets deal moves closer

BAE Systems has moved a step closer to sealing a multi-billionpound contract to supply Typhoon fighter jets to Saudi Arabia.

On the last day of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s three-day visit to Britain, the UK and Saudi governments have signed a memorandum of intent to finalise discussions on the deal.

In a statement, BAE Systems described it as a “positive step towards agreeing a contract” for the 48 state-of-the-art planes.

The Crown Prince, 32, met Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson at RAF Northolt ahead of his return to the desert kingdom.

His visit also included talks with Prime Minister Theresa May and the Archbishop of Canterbury, as well as an audience with the Queen, and saw agreement on an estimated £65 billion worth of additional trade in the coming years as part of the Crown Prince’s Vision 2030 economic plan.

Any order for UK-built warplanes would spark protests from anti-war campaigners.

Andrew Smith of Campaign Against Arms Trade said the UK had already licensed £4.6 billion of arms for Saudi Arabia since hostilities began in Yemen in 2015.

“If agreed, this shameful deal will be celebrated in the palaces of Riyadh and by the arms companies who will profit from it, but it will mean even greater destruction for the people of Yemen,” he said.