Last year, despite far-reaching export restrictions, the German government approved the delivery of military equipment to Saudi Arabia for 44.2 million euros – more than at any time since 2018. This emerges from a response from the Ministry of Economics to a request from the Left Party MP Sevim Dagdelen, which is available to the German Press Agency. It points out that these are exclusively exports for joint projects with other EU or NATO states.

A total of 48 permits have been issued for Saudi Arabia. 7.1 million euros of the export volume is accounted for by war weapons, 37.1 million by other armaments. These include supplies for Tornado and Eurofighter fighter jets manufactured in Great Britain. In addition, the German government allowed the United States to export combat ship components worth 40.8 million euros to Saudi Arabia, originally from Germany.

The former German government had largely stopped arms exports to the hard-handed desert state, among other things because of the kingdom's involvement in the Yemen war and the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the consulate general in Istanbul in 2018. However, the government of the CDU/CSU and SPD allowed exceptions for joint projects with alliance partners – and made use of them again and again. However, not as strong as the traffic light government of SPD, Greens and FDP in their first year in government.

In 2019, the black-red government approved arms exports for 0.8 million euros, in 2020 for 30.8 million euros and in 2021 for 2.5 million euros. The traffic light government has now increased export permits to 44.2 million in 2022. In the Ministry of Economic Affairs, headed by Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck (Greens), an arms export law is currently being drafted. The original goal was to significantly restrict arms exports to third countries.

The Left Party foreign policy expert Sevim Dagdelen sharply criticized the export permits. "The fact that the traffic light government unwaveringly and continuously approves its own arms deliveries as well as arms exports via third countries to Saudi Arabia, although the head-down dictatorship is responsible for the Yemen war with almost 400,000 dead, is criminal and illustrates what the Greens understand by value-based, feminist foreign policy."