Saudi Arabia

For further information regarding the country, please check the links below the chart. Detailed information about each category are provided on the pages following the links.

1. Arms Embargoes and other International Obligations Possibly critical
2. Adherence to Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Critical
3. Internal Conflict Critical
4. Preservation of Regional Peace, Security and Stability Critical
5. Presence of Allied Armed Forces in Fragile Environments Critical
6. Membership in International Conventions Possibly critical
7. Arms Export Controls and Transparency Critical
8. Danger of Disproportionate Military Capacities Impairing Development Not critical
Value of approved arms export licenses from Germany to Saudi Arabia in €
Year Arms export licenses in €
1999 26,127,015
2000 37,200,271
2001 38,222,922
2002 26,522,870
2003 43,699,441
2004 58,785,113
2005 29,854,300
2006 56,913,949
2007 45,495,688
2008 170,379,016
2009 167,953,616
2010 152,492,937
2011 139,550,035
2012 1,237,288,814
2013 361,024,681
2014 208,966,567
2015 270,040,534
2016 529,705,969
2017 254,457,823
2018 416,423,547
2019 831,003
2020 30,753,949
2021 2,516,056
2022 44,229,620
2023 44,229,620
German exports of weapons of war to Saudi Arabia in €
Year German exports of weapons of war in €
1999 0
2000 0
2001 0
2002 0
2003 0
2004 588,000
2005 3,814,000
2006 2,705,000
2007 10,079,000
2008 13,085,000
2009 8,697,000
2010 30,300,000
2011 29,599,000
2012 9,895,000
2013 46,452,100
2014 47,490,000
2015 -
2016 18,384,000
2017 110,303,000
2018 159,840,000
2019 -
2020 -
2021 n.s.
2022 -
2023 -

1999-2002: Data only available for commercial exports to the 10 largest recipient states.

2003-2010: All exports of weapons of war, including commercial and non-commercial exports.

n.s.: Not specified

Weapons of war: According to section §1(2) of the German War Weapons Control Act (KrWaffKontrG), weapons of war are “objects, substances or organisms that are capable of causing destruction or damage to persons or objects either alone or in combination with each other or other objects and that may serve as a means to use force in armed conflicts between states” (see Annex 5 of the Arms Exports Report of the German Government).

Armaments: According to the 2019 Arms Exports Report of the German government (page 9) armaments are “a whole range of goods that go beyond terms dominating the public debate about arms exports, like “weapons” or “tanks” (see Annex 4 of the Arms Exports Report of the German Government).