The US State Department has fired a senior official who orchestrated a massive $8 billion weapons deal for his ex-employer, Raytheon, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.
The man named Charles Faulkner used to work as an outside lobbyist for defence contractor Raytheon Co. then, he came to the US State Department where he served as deputy assistant secretary until last May.
According to Wall Street Journal, he resigned after he orchestrated a plan to use President Trump's emergency declaration citing tensions over Iran that allowed an $8 billion arms sales to Saudi Arabia and UAE to be signed bypassing Congressional oversight.
As a part of the deal, Faulkner orchestrated $2 billion worth of precision-guided missiles to two Arab nations.
"Should he be making decisions about the arms sales he was working on before he came to the government?" a congressional aide asked, according to a Morning Star report.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee scheduled a hearing for next week to discuss the State Department's decisions, and Faulkner's scheme is expected to be a focus of questioning.
Speaking to the journalists, Faulkner's former colleagues at the State Department said he was a "polarizing figure" even before the controversial deal took place.
Neither Faulkner himself nor the State Department provided any comments regarding the issue, a Morning Star report says.
