Saudi defense minister discusses ‘Decisive Storm’ cooperation with U.S.

Saudi defense minister Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz met on Monday with Senator Jim Inhofe, member of the armed services committee at the U.S. Senate, and his accompanying delegation, Al Arabiya News Channel reported.

The meeting addressed means of cooperation between the kingdom and the U.S. during the “Decisive Storm” campaign led by the Saudi kingdom upon the request of Yemeni President Abdrabbu Mansour Hadi to halt Houthi militia advances and and restore stability and support legitimacy to the country.

On Friday, President Barack Obama offered U.S. support for air strikes led by Saudi Arabia and Gulf allies on Houthi militia camps in Yemen during a phone call with King Salman.

"The President and King Salman agreed that our collective goal is to achieve lasting stability in Yemen through a negotiated political solution facilitated by the United Nations and involving all parties as envisioned in the GCC Initiative," National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan said in a statement.

The remarks follow U.S. lawmakers of both parties reiterating their support for the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen against Houthi rebels, named “Operation Decisive Storm.”

“I applaud the Saudis for taking this action to protect their homeland and to protect their own neighborhood,” House Speaker John Boehner, a Republican, said at a news conference. “If America leads, our allies in the region would be tickled to death and would be happy to join a coalition. But America has to lead.”

The Obama administration has said it is providing “logistical and intelligence support” for the operations. Meehan had earlier justified the offensive against the Houthis as having been requested by Hadi and Yemen’s “legitimate government.”