Testing the Arrow
Photo courtesy of the IAI
US hindering Arrow sale to Turkey
US has yet to approve or reject sale of anti-missile system to Ankara
Israel has been negotiating a sale of the Arrow anti-missile system to Turkey but US objection have stymied progress on a possible deal, Israeli officials confirmed Wednesday.
Ankara is keen on purchasing the Arrow from Israel to fend off the threat of Iran's long range missiles.
Although Israel has agreed on principle to supply the system to Turkey but still needs to get the nod from Washington before a final deal. The Arrow is a joint US-Israeli project into which the Pentagon poured hundreds of millions of dollars.
While Washington has not yet given its final verdict on the sale, Israeli officials say that Israel could still pull out of talks with Turkey for fear that sensitive defense technology could end up with enemy states.
If the sale goes through, Turkey will become the third country to which Israel sells the Arrow.
The Arrow was sold to India in 2002 and to South Korea last year.
Ariyeh Egozy contributed to this report
