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Source: https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2022/09/02/pentagon-announces-contract-for-israeli-kc-46s/
Pentagon Announces Contract for Israeli KC-46s Refueling Aircraft but Has More Work To Do
(FDD Analysis) Bradley Bowman and Ryan Brobst - The Pentagon announced on Wednesday an up to $927 million foreign military sale contract with Boeing to provide Israel four KC-46A air refueling aircraft, with the first currently expected to arrive in 2025. Signing the contract this summer locks in Jerusalem's place in the queue for the aircraft and avoids delaying delivery by another year, but the Pentagon and Israeli Ministry of Defense should take several additional steps now to minimize the time between Israel's receipt of the aircraft and when they can be employed in combat operations. The Biden administration is wise to welcome an enhanced Israeli capability to strike Iran's nuclear program, understanding that the credible threat of such an attack provides the United States with additional coercive leverage when dealing with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Indeed, as then-Secretary of State George P. Shultz told an audience at Kansas State University in 1984, "Negotiations are a euphemism for capitulation if the shadow of power is not cast across the bargaining table."