In an announcement on 17/9, the US Department of State stated it had approved a potential deal to sell Saudi Arabia a total of 48 F-35 stealth fighter jets and related equipment, estimated at 24,3 billion USD. The final quantity of equipment and price will be determined during negotiations between the buyer and the supplier.

"The proposed deal will enhance Saudi Arabia's deterrence capabilities against current and future threats by strengthening its domestic defense capacity and improving interoperability with US forces. The deal will not affect the military balance in the region", the announcement stated.

A US F-35A fighter jet flying in the Middle East on 10/9. Photo: USAF

The US Congress will have 30 days from receiving the notification to decide whether to block the deal. If there is no opposition from the US Congress, the contract will be presented to President Donald Trump for approval.

The US currently only agrees to sell F-35 fighter jets to its closest allies. Israel is the only country in the Middle East currently operating this aircraft type.

Saudi Arabia has long sought to purchase F-35 fighter jets, but Israeli officials have repeatedly expressed concerns about this possibility. In 2019, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly opposed any F-35 sales to Arab countries, calling it "a threat to Israel's national survival".

The US is also concerned about the risk of China conducting espionage activities related to the F-35 program. The New York Times reported this week that US intelligence analysts have raised the possibility of China acquiring F-35 related technology through its partnership with Saudi Arabia.

Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat on the US House Intelligence Committee, cited these reasons when opposing the sale of F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia. According to him, the deal should not proceed after US intelligence warned that it could allow Beijing access to valuable Washington military technology.

This is one of Saudi Arabia's numerous efforts to acquire weapons this year. Earlier this month, the US Department of State announced the approval of a contract to sell Saudi Arabia over 10.000 bombs worth 5 billion USD, as well as 60 tank engines and related equipment valued at 750 million USD.

In July, Washington also approved a 1,96 billion USD deal to sell 20.000 APKWS II rockets and related equipment to Riyadh.

These moves come as Saudi Arabia has faced repeated attacks from Iran since the Middle East conflict erupted in late February. The country has also been attacked by the Iran-backed Houthi armed group in Yemen.

Pham Giang (According to AFP)