“Trump has announced plans to sell the F-35 to Saudi Arabia, despite concerns about possible technology leaks to China.”, — write: www.pravda.com.ua
F-35A Lightning fighter. Photo: Getty Images Source: The New York Times
Direct speech: “We’ll do it, we’ll sell the F-35.”
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Details: Trump told reporters gathered in the Oval Office that the Saudis “want to buy them, they’ve been great allies.”
Trump’s statement came on the eve of the visit to the White House of the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, who visited the United States for the first time in seven years.
The prince and US officials are expected to discuss Saudi Arabia’s purchase of 48 fighter jets and a possible mutual defense agreement.
The F-35 is manufactured primarily by defense contractor Lockheed Martin, which produces between 150 and 190 warplanes per year.
According to recent contracts, about 20 countries have or have ordered the planes, which now cost between $80 million and $110 million each, depending on the model.
Saudi Arabia has long been one of the largest buyers of American weapons.
But its behavior on the world stage has some U.S. government officials concerned about the potential national security implications of giving Riyadh unlimited access to some of the most classified U.S. technology.
A recent report by the Pentagon’s Defense Intelligence Agency raised concerns that China would gain access to F-35 technology if the U.S. struck a deal to sell the warplanes to Saudi Arabia, as Riyadh and Beijing share a security partnership.
Officials also expressed concern that such a deal could jeopardize Israel’s regional “qualitative military advantage” as the only country in the Middle East that currently has the F-35.
Under the law, Congress would have the ability to block the sale even if the Trump administration approves it.