Israel reportedly signals opposition to US plan to sell F-35 to Saudi Arabia

Israel has signaled its opposition to a proposed U.S. sale of F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, Israel’s Kan Newsbroadcaster reported Saturday. Outgoing Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer reportedly raised the Jewish state’s concerns regarding the sale of 48 jets to Riyadh during a final meeting he held with senior officials in Washington last week.

According to Kan News, Jerusalem fears that the sale of the jets will lead to information leaks to Russia and China, allies of Saudi Arabia, and to the loss of the Israel Defense Forces’ qualitative military edge in the region. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday that he was considering agreeing to supply Saudi Arabia with the state-of-the-art stealth jets.

“They wanna buy a lot of jets,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. “I’m looking at that. They’ve asked me to look at it. They want to buy a lot of ’35,’ but they want to buy actually more than that, fighter jets.” News of the potential sale comes as Trump plans to host Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Washington on Tuesday. The two leaders are expected to sign economic and defense agreements. (Ed note: Is President Trump being taken in by the Arab dollars that will come into the US?)  (Read More)