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Israel Concerned over Possible U.S. Sale of F-35s to UAE

(JNS) Yaakov Lappin - Responding to the potential U.S. sale of F-35 fighter jets to the UAE, Israel opposes the sale of advanced weapons - even to the friendliest Arab states. Current governments could be toppled and replaced with less friendly forces, as occurred in Egypt, armed with F-16 planes and M1 Abrams tanks; Iran, a former ally of Israel that was armed with U.S.-made F-14 jets prior to the 1979 Islamic revolution; and Turkey, a NATO member that is increasingly hostile to Israel. Col. (res.) Udi Evental, former head of the Strategic Planning Unit of the Political-Military and Policy Bureau of the Israeli Defense Ministry, noted that Israel's military advantage has already been eroding in recent decades due to regional states stocking up on advanced Western and Russian weapons "at a massive scale estimated at more than $400 billion....In a future scenario of a change in intentions and orientation, they could quickly turn into a heavy and direct threat against us." Once the UAE gets F-35 aircraft, Evental said, "all of the Gulf states and Egypt will demand to purchase the plane from the U.S.," a scenario that could spark "a regional arms race, and end up killing the U.S.' qualitative military edge law" for Israel.
2020-08-27 00:00:00
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