Less than three weeks before the massacre of October 7 in September 2023, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) made a historic statement. In a rare interview at the time with Fox News, he said: “Every day we are getting closer to an agreement with Israel.” The war flipped the cards, and while normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel still does not appear on the horizon, the Crown Prince scored a major achievement at the White House on Tuesday, something that until now seemed dependent on a deal with Israel.
Donald Trump had confirmed he will sell F‑35s to Saudi Arabia even before the Crown Prince’s arrival at the White House, but those who expected a breakthrough on ties with Israel did not receive one.
“We will do it. We will sell F‑35 fighter jets,” Trump said, calling Saudi Arabia a “great ally.” In Jerusalem, hints prior to Tuesday evening's meeting indicated they would not oppose the sale of the advanced stealth jets to the Gulf state so long as Saudi Arabia normalizes relations with Israel — but in Riyadh they now boast: we succeeded in separating the issues.
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Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman tours White House grounds with President Donald Trump
(Photo: Jessica Koscielniak/Reuters)
Instead of forcing Saudi Arabia into a deal with Israel, Trump chose to proceed where he could. Mere hours after the meeting the White House announced that an agreement had been reached for civil‑nuclear cooperation with Saudi Arabia, in addition to the F‑35 sales agreement. It was also reported that Riyadh will purchase about 300 American tanks from Washington. “Trump has approved the sale of the defense package, which includes future F‑35 deliveries,” read the White House statement.
Afterwards, Trump declared that he recognizes Saudi Arabia as a “senior ally that is not a member of NATO.” This is effectively the special status granted to the Kingdom for U.S. strategic partnerships — which among other things grants military and economic benefits. This deal is expected to shift the balance of power in the region, strengthening Saudi Arabia as a Middle‑Eastern power and making it the first Arab state to receive the most advanced American fighter jets.
The sale, it should be noted, still requires approvals and congressional oversight, but the Trump administration can attempt to advance it over the next three years — a move that could alter the military balance relative to Riyadh, especially in light of any Israeli opposition. Saudi sources told CNN overnight that the big success was the separation between the Israeli issue and the large U.S.–Saudi deal. “Trump did not condition the F‑35 sale on normalization with Israel,” the sources said. However, Trump said that such an agreement between Riyadh and Jerusalem remains a central objective of his.
An Israeli security official told the American network after the meeting that it is “very worrying” that Riyadh is getting these jets without real progress on normalization with Israel. “For many years we have taken great care that no one in the Middle East have those jets and those capabilities like we do,” he said. “The gravity of the matter is not exaggerated. It is not good for Israel.”
A day before the historic meeting at the White House, ynet learned that the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces had earlier this week submitted a professional position paper from the Air Force to the political echelon, in which it voiced explicit reservations about the sale of F‑35s from the U.S. to Saudi Arabia.
The document stressed the importance of preserving Israel’s air superiority in the Middle East, which could be eroded if other states in the region hold the stealth fifth‑generation aircraft or other “Generation 5” platforms — primarily because of their unique detection, processing and networked capabilities — which give Israel an advantage that no one else has. It was further noted that missions executed by the Israeli Air Force in the “third circle” via the Adir (F‑35 i) are based on Israel’s exclusive use of the platform in the region, enabling deep, covert operations far from the nation’s borders. That exclusivity could be compromised if identical jets fall into the hands of other militaries, including Saudi Arabia.
Bin Salman was received with full honors at the White House last night. A red carpet was rolled out for MBS at the entrance to the White House, where he shook hands with the U.S. President. Afterwards the two looked to the skies as fighter jets — apparently F‑35s — participated in a fly‑past in honor of the Saudi heir. After the reception and tour of the White House, the leaders proceeded to the Oval Office and addressed the press.
Trump confirmed that Saudi Arabia will receive F‑35s, noted they will be “the same model that Israel received," and said Saudi Arabia is “a wonderful ally, like Israel.” According to him, despite the reservations in the security establishment, Israel will be “very happy” about the F‑35 deal with Saudi Arabia.