The Media Line: ‘We Will Sell F-35s to Saudi Arabia’: Trump Confirms Arms Deal at Heart of Regional Realignment 

‘We Will Sell F-35s to Saudi Arabia’: Trump Confirms Arms Deal at Heart of Regional Realignment 

Israeli security fears over distance and basing dominate the debate as President Donald Trump signals approval for the Saudi purchase and negotiators try to build a broader regional package 

By Steven Ganot/The Media Line 

The White House is moving forward with plans to sell advanced F-35 stealth fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, with President Donald Trump confirming on Monday in Washington that the United States “will be doing that” and that the kingdom is “a great ally.” His comments come as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrives in the US for a high-stakes Oval Office meeting expected to address not only the aircraft sale but also a broad Washington–Riyadh security package and renewed efforts to secure Israeli-Saudi normalization. 

The latest remarks from the US president represent the clearest indication to date that the administration intends to approve the transfer, even as internal US assessments raise concerns. According to a Pentagon intelligence review reported by The New York Times, American officials are worried that China could gain access to the jet’s sensitive technology if the sale goes ahead. 

What is known publicly is that Saudi Arabia has submitted a request to purchase as many as 48 F-35 aircraft, a figure that cleared a major Pentagon hurdle earlier this month, according to multiple Reuters reports. The jets would represent the kingdom’s most advanced weapons acquisition yet and form part of its long-term military modernization effort. 

But the prospective sale is entangled in regional diplomacy. Israel, the only Middle Eastern country that currently operates the F-35, is not opposing the transfer outright, yet has warned the White House that any move must come with a political payoff. “We told the Trump administration that the supply of F-35s to Saudi Arabia needs to be subject to Saudi normalization with Israel,” one senior Israeli official said. Another added that providing the jets “without any diplomatic return” would be “a mistake and counterproductive.” 

Israeli officials say their principal concern is geography. Saudi territory is far closer to Israel than the bases used by the United Arab Emirates, which was previously approved for F-35 purchases under the Abraham Accords. “It takes minutes for an F-35 to fly from Saudi Arabia to Israel,” one official said, noting that Jerusalem will demand strict basing restrictions and a new set of US security assurances to preserve its legal qualitative military edge—a commitment codified by Congress in 2008. 

Behind the scenes, US and Saudi negotiators are also working to finalize a wide defense pact that would grant Saudi Arabia a security guarantee modeled on the executive-order pledge issued to Qatar in 2024. The arrangement would fall short of a treaty requiring Senate approval but would still signal deepened partnership. Saudi national security adviser Musaad Al-Aiban has recently visited Washington to advance the talks, while Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman said his meetings this week with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and White House envoy Steve Witkoff focused on “bolstering strategic cooperation.” 

President Trump’s advisers have made clear they want progress on the Israel-Saudi track as part of the broader package. “I hope that Saudi Arabia will be going into the Abraham Accords fairly shortly,” the US president said aboard Air Force One. Israeli and US officials confirm that the administration wants to use this week’s Trump–Mohammed bin Salman meeting to narrow the remaining gaps between Riyadh and Jerusalem. 

The main sticking point remains Saudi Arabia’s insistence on what it calls a “credible, irreversible and time-bound path” to Palestinian statehood in exchange for normalization. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has refused to commit to such terms. American officials acknowledge the gap but say they still expect movement during this week’s discussions. 

The Pentagon intelligence concerns, while serious, do not appear to have slowed the political track. A senior White House official told reporters that President Trump is “leaning toward” approving the F-35 sale even with those warnings. Administration officials have also noted the American president’s record of unpredictability: earlier reports suggested he was unlikely to approve the sale, yet over the past 48 hours he has twice publicly confirmed that the US will proceed. 

For Saudi Arabia, the jet sale would symbolize full rehabilitation with Washington and cement Mohammed bin Salman’s rise ahead of his expected ascent to the throne. It would also mark his first visit to the US since the 2018 killing of Jamal Khashoggi, which US intelligence concluded he approved. 

US and Israeli officials say that if this week’s talks achieve a breakthrough, negotiations will move into a direct trilateral channel involving the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia, with the F-35 sale, the defense pact, and normalization steps all linked in a single framework. 

For now, the outlines are clear: Saudi Arabia wants roughly four dozen of the world’s most advanced fighter jets; Israel wants normalization in exchange; President Trump wants a regional legacy centered on the Abraham Accords; and the White House is preparing for what could be the most consequential set of Middle East agreements since 2020.