The United States recommitted itself to maintaining Israel’s military dominance in the Middle East Thursday during a visit to the Pentagon by Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz, the two sides said.
With Washington gearing up to sell advanced F-35 fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates — Israel is the only country in the Middle East to have the aircraft — Gantz received assurances from US Defense Secretary Mark Esper that Israel’s “qualitative military edge” would not suffer.
“I want to state, again, how committed we are to Israel’s qualitative military edge when it comes to defense sales, and our commitment to Israel’s security, which has been longstanding and it’s guaranteed and ironclad,” Esper said as the two met.
Read more: Israel does not want UAE to be sold F-35 fighter jets despite deal
In his second meeting in Washington with Esper in a month, Gantz said the two had been in discussions for weeks to “assure the bipartisan commitment for Israel’s security.”
After their meeting Gantz tweeted that the two sides had signed “a joint declaration confirming the United States’ strategic commitment to Israel’s qualitative military edge in the Middle East for years to come.”
Israel has made its concerns clear following President Donald Trump’s confirmation last month that the United States could sell F-35s to the UAE.
The country has long opposed the sale of F-35s to any US allies in the region including Jordan and Egypt, both of which already recognize Israel.
https://twitter.com/JuliaWraith/status/1315949287310725120
Since the 1960s the US has approached the issue on the principle that Israel should maintain a “qualitative military edge” (QME), and the concept has been formalized in legislation from Congress.
But the UAE, which sits along the strategic Strait of Hormuz across from Iran, which is seen by Israel and the United States as a major threat, has sought the advanced fighters for several years.
Trump, who polls suggest will be defeated by Democrat Joe Biden in the November 3 election, reportedly wants to rush through the F-35 sale by January, when he would have to step down if not reelected.
Read more: Israel establishes relations with Bahrain, UAE at White House: Trump says more deals coming
Gantz also suggested that Esper could be visiting the Jewish state soon, telling his US counterpart that he is “looking forward to host you in Israel.”
While the Pentagon did not provide any information on the document signed by the two defense chiefs, according to Israeli media, it pledged the US to supporting Israel’s QME for the next four years.
Israel opposed to Middle Eastern countries receiving F-35s
Earlier this year, the UAE had reportedly cancelled an anticipated tripartite meeting with Israel and the US over a pending F-35 fighter jets sale.
Abu Dhabi cancelled the meeting in protest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s opposition to selling F-35s to the UAE, news site Axios reported, citing sources familiar with the subject.
On Aug. 18, the Israeli premier had renewed his government’s opposition to selling US F-35s and other advanced weapons to countries in the region “including Arab countries that make peace with the State of Israel.”
Earlier that month, the UAE and Israel announced a US-brokered agreement to normalize relations, including opening embassies in each other’s territory. The UAE is the third Arab country to sign a peace agreement with Israel following Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994.
“They haven’t agreed to anything other than, in principle, let’s do this campaign to rescue our friend from oblivion,” said a government official. He added that Trump will use the meeting as a “photo-op” for his re-election bid in a move that will also benefit Netanyahu, who is facing unprecedented protests and corruption charges.
Ariel Gold, national co-director of Code Pink, an anti-war feminist group, echoed the remarks, saying that the deal aims to boost all three leaders involved.
She said Trump wants to divert US public attention away from the mounting death toll of the pandemic; UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed wants to distract from his country’s human rights abuses, and Netanyahu wants to quell demonstrations against his government.
“So this is a win-win for all three of them, but the big losers are the Palestinian people,” Gold told MEE.
AFP with additional input by GVS News Desk