UAE suspends discussions on acquiring US F-35 fighter jets

Middle East, News December 16, 2021 , by IRIA No Comments

The United Arab Emirates suspended discussion on a deal to purchase U.S.-made F-35 aircraft, drones, and other military equipment.

The UAE had expressed interest in getting the Lockheed Martin F-35 aircraft and signed a $23 billion deal with the U.S. to buy Lockheed Martin, General Atomics, and Raytheon Technologies equipment including 50 F-35 Lightning II fighter jet, 18 MQ-9B Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), as well as air-to-air and air-to-ground munitions.

However, on December 14, a UAE official said that “The UAE has informed the US that it will suspend discussions to acquire the F-35… Technical requirements, sovereign operational restrictions, and cost/benefit analysis led to the re-assessment.”

The U.S. Department of State said the Biden administration remained committed to the deal, under which the U.S. would deliver its most advanced weapons to the Arab state. However, the U.S. administration is increasingly concerned that the UAE’s close relationship with China and use of Huawei’s 5G technology will increase the risk of sensitive information being leaked to China.

The U.S. also pressed the UAE government to reduce the exposure to China-based telecommunications technologies.

In response, the UAE officials accused the U.S. of insisting on restricting the use and location of F-35s and claimed that they are violating the sovereignty of the UAE.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on December 15 stated during his Malaysia visit, “We remain prepared to move forward… if that is what the Emiratis are interested in doing.”

“We’ve wanted to make sure, for example, that our commitment to Israel’s qualitative military edge is ensured, so we wanted to make sure that we could do a thorough review of any technologies that are sold or transferred to other partners in the region, including the UAE,” Secretary Blinken added.

Despite the UAE’s decision, this week’s meeting between the two countries at the Pentagon will be held as scheduled. The embassy said in a statement: “The U.S. remains the UAE’s preferred provider for advanced defense requirements and discussions for the F-35 may be re-opened in the future.”

Department of Defense spokesperson John Kirby told reporters that U.S. requirements on the use of military equipment “are universal, non-negotiable, and not specific to the UAE.” “The U.S. partnership with the UAE is more strategic and more complex than anyone weapon sale,” Kirby added.

Earlier the construction of a naval port in the UAE by China also led the U.S. to question Beijing’s military objectives in the country.

Last week, a senior UAE diplomat admitted that the UAE had halted construction on a Chinese facility in the port of Abu Dhabi, which the United States considers to be a military base.

The UAE leadership’s diplomatic advisor Anwar Gargash said “We took these American concerns into consideration and we stopped the work on the facilities… But our position remains the same, that these facilities were not really military facilities.”