The United States’ allies in the Middle East should face “ramifications” if they aren’t more helpful in the fight against terrorism, the Republican head of the Senate Intelligence Committee says.
Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have been “a contributor to the funding since al Qaeda was created,” Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina told CNN’s Jim Scuitto Sunday on “State of the Union.”
“And, hopefully, our administration is reaching out to them, as is the global community, and saying, ‘Things have to stop. You have to quit funding terrorism. You have to quit teaching this to your youth,'” Burr said.
“We have got to make sure that we’re after the same future that they are,” he said. “And I dare say that if they’re not willing to help us in that partnership, then there ought to be some type of ramifications from it.”
Connecticut Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy agreed with Burr, saying on “State of the Union” that Saudi Arabia and Pakistan help “perpetuate this myth” that the battle against terrorism is about religion or East against West.
“We’ve let it go on for far too long,” Murphy said, “and now that we realize the reality, the danger, the immediacy of this threat to the United States and to our allies, I think Republicans and Democrats can come together and say, ‘listen time is up, we need to see some progress.'”
