Why Iran’s Retaliation Is Being Aimed At US-Armed Gulf States

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Iran’s recent strikes and threats across West Asia are not random acts of aggression. Data on arms imports and defence partnerships shows a clear pattern: Gulf nations are not only military bases of the US, but are also heavily dependent on US-supplied weapons.

At the heart of this pattern lies the region’s position in the global arms market.

West Asia accounts for a significant share of global arms imports, led by Gulf nations that rank among the world’s largest weapons buyers and remain closely tied to the United States for military support, shows data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) for the years 2021-25.  

Saudi Arabia alone accounts for 6.8 per cent of global arms imports, making it the world’s third-largest arms importer in this period. Qatar follows closely with 6.4 per cent, ranking fourth globally, while Kuwait has emerged as one of the fastest-growing arms importers worldwide, recording a surge of over 800 per cent compared to the previous five-year period.

This sharp rise underlines how heavily armed parts of West Asia have become in recent years. But the significance of these numbers goes beyond volume alone.

What ties these countries together is not just how much weaponry they import, but who supplies it. The United States dominates as the primary arms supplier across much of the Gulf, shaping the region’s military capabilities and security alignments. Saudi Arabia sources 77 per cent of its arms imports from the US, forming the backbone of its air force, missile defence and precision-strike capacity.

Bahrain shows the highest dependence of all. The country sources 99 per cent of its defence imports from the United States, while also hosting the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, making it one of Washington’s most tightly integrated regional security partners. Israel, another key US ally, relies on American suppliers for 68 per cent of its weapons, including advanced aircraft and guided munitions.

Kuwait depends on the US for 62 per cent of its arms imports, while Qatar and the United Arab Emirates source over 40 per cent of their military hardware from American suppliers. 

Together, these figures highlight how US weapons systems form the core of Gulf defence structures.