US STATE DEPT. APPROVES $23.37 BLN SALE OF ADVANCED DEFENSE EQUIPMENT, F-35 JETS TO UAE

Middle East World

Wed 11 October 2020:

The Trump administration told Congress on Tuesday it had approved the US sale of more than $23 billion in advanced weapons systems, including F-35 fighter jets and armed drones, to the United Arab Emirates, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said.

The package includes up to 50 F-35 Lighting II fighter jets, valued at $10.4 billion, up to 18 MQ-9B Unmanned Aerial Systems (advanced armed drone systems), valued at $2.97 billion and a package of air-to-air and air-to-ground munitions, valued at $10 billion.

 

“The United Arab Emirates is a longtime vital US security partner. Today, I directed the Department to formally notify Congress of our intent to authorize the UAE’s proposed purchase of several advanced capabilities that are worth $23.37 billion,” Pompeo said in a statement.

The US top diplomat said the UAE’s agreement to normalize relations with with Israel offered a “once-in-a-generation opportunity to positively transform the region’s strategic landscape.”

The US Senate Foreign Relations and House of Representatives Foreign Affairs committees – whose members have criticized UAE’s role in civilian deaths in Yemen’s civil war – review major weapons sales before the State Department sends its formal notification to the legislative branch.

Any deal the United States makes to sell weapons in the Middle East must satisfy decades of agreement with Israel that it must not impair Israel’s “qualitative military edge” over its neighbors.

Israeli officials have previously expressed some concern about an F-35 sale because it could affect the balance of military power in the region. But Pompeo said the sale is “fully consistent” with the longstanding policy of maintaining Israel’s qualitive military advantage.

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