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ISLAMABAD: United States (US) Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican lawmaker from South Carolina and chair of the Senate Budget Committee, questioned Saudi Arabia&rsquo;s perceived unwillingness to participate in the ongoing Middle East War on&nbsp;Monday. In a post on the social media platform X (Twitter), Graham shared a March 8 report by The New York Times. It said the US State Department issued mandatory departure orders for American employees and their families in Saudi Arabia, citing increased regional security risks and attacks on diplomatic facilities. The directive followed recent drone attacks on the US Embassy in Riyadh, according to The New York Times. <div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 761px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2031031760679563310&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2F4651%2F&sessionId=70271773dca0139699bac795892f06edf5608a52&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px"></iframe></div></div> In his post, Graham questioned why the United States should sign a defence agreement with Saudi Arabia if Riyadh was not prepared to participate in a war against Iran. &ldquo;Americans are dying and the US is spending billions&rdquo; to remove what the US Senator described as the &ldquo;terrorist Iranian regime.&rdquo; He wrote that Saudi Arabia was &ldquo;issuing statements and doing things in the background that are marginally helpful.&rdquo; Graham also called on Saudi Arabia and other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, a regional political and economic bloc of Arab states, to take a more active role. He said the conflict was unfolding &ldquo;in their backyard.&rdquo; &ldquo;If you are not willing to use your military now, when are you willing to use it?&rdquo; Graham wrote. He warned that if the situation does not change soon, &ldquo;consequences will follow.&rdquo;

US Senator Lindsey Graham speaks to members of the media as the Trump Cabinet briefs members of Congress on Iran at the US Capitol. (AFP)

Middle East

Senator Lindsey Graham threatened Saudi Arabia over its refusal to join the US war on Iran, warning Riyadh and other Gulf countries could 'face consequences' if they continued avoiding direct military involvement.

Articles tagged with "Lindsey Graham"

US Senator threatens Saudi Arabia over not joining war on Iran

US Senator threatens Saudi Arabia over not joining war on Iran