Saudi Arabia’s military: Col. Brad Gandy, USMTM talks U.S.-Saudi defense and security relationship

The 966 talks with Col. Brad Gandy, former Chief of the US Training Mission in Saudi Arabia (USMTM) about the U.S.-Saudi security relationship and the ongoing transformation in Saudi Arabia’s military. On last week’s episode, we talked about the huge transformation going on in Saudi Arabia’s military and USMTM’s role in it with author Bilal Saab, who has a book coming out on the subject. This week, the head of the USMTM from 2019-2021, Col. Brad Gandy, who heard last week’s episode and agreed to join us for Episode 33 of The 966 to talk about it. Before serving as head of USMTM in Saudi Arabia, Col. Gandy served as the senior US defense official and defense attache to Yemen, and he has spent years in the region and in Saudi Arabia in various capacities. He also served as U.S. army attache to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between 2006 and 2010. Col. Gandy has one of the more impressive resumes out there. Before serving as head of USMTM in Saudi Arabia, he served as the senior US defense official and defense attache to Yemen, and he has spent years in the region and in Saudi Arabia in various capacities. He also served as U.S. army attache to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between 2006 and 2010… The hosts ask Brad to help us better understand what the USMTM is and the role it plays, how the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) process works, and more. The hosts also ask about the ongoing military transformation in Saudi Arabia and the role USMTM plays in it. The Saudi defense transformation plan is coordinating with the USMTM by embedding, for the first time ever, U.S. military and civilian advisors throughout the Saudi Ministry of Defense, and that included select U.S. defense companies to implement advice, assist, and mentor components of the project. As chief of the USMTM from 2019-2021, Col. Gandy oversaw this process.