Trump's Saudi Arms Deal: How F-35 Sales Shift Middle East Power Balance

"... We officially designated the kingdom yesterday as a major non-NATO ally... That's a sign of trust. We signed a historic strategic defence agreement yesterday... We're going to be selling Saudi Arabia some of the greatest military equipment ever built. We build the best military equipment in the world by far. That's why we do the most business, including nearly 300 American-made tanks, which you're buying, many other things, the aeroplanes...," Trump said at the US-Saudi Investment Forum.

Donald Trump noted that the relationship between the US and Saudi Arabia has probably grown stronger after they "very quickly" "obliterated" the nuclear capability of Iran and likened it to a "real cloud over the whole Middle East".

"The partnership between our two nations is among the most consequential in the entire world and together the Crown Prince and I are making an alliance stronger and more powerful than ever before. We've had good relationships... And now it is and probably even better because we took the dark cloud away from your country. It was called Iran and its nuclear capability. We obliterated that very quickly and strongly... But that was a real cloud over the whole Middle East and now they wanna make a deal... We'll be doing that probably. But that was a terrible cloud that you had to live with for a long time; for 22 years, they were thinking about doing that. That was even before the B2s. The B2s were undetectable and they dropped their payload and every single bomb hit its exact mark, which was a shaft going deep into the mountain...and it was total obliteration... But they want to make a deal. We'll see what happens." Trump said.

He also mentioned some "groundbreaking" agreements signed by the two countries and expressed gratitude to the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia for "bringing all those jobs and great opportunities to our country"

"This week, our countries also signed groundbreaking agreements on civil nuclear energy, critical minerals, and artificial intelligence...That is in addition to the $600 billion investment in the United States that Saudi Arabia announced during my visit there last spring... Yesterday, the Crown Prince announced that they'll be investing in the US is $1 trillion... We're told that $270 billion in agreements and sales are being signed between dozens of companies... On behalf of the thousands of American workers, I want to thank you for bringing all those jobs and great opportunities to our country...,' Trump said.

Earlier, the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia received a reception befitting a head of state, with an Army-mounted honour guard, a military flyover of six planes, and cannon salutes on the White House South Lawn as he arrived at the White House.

Trump then walked his guest along the newly created "Presidential Walk of Fame" outside the West Wing before the two walked into the Oval Office.

"We have an extremely respected man in the Oval Office today, and a friend of mine for a long time," Trump said during the welcoming ceremony.

Inside the Oval Office, the crown prince indicated Saudi Arabia's willingness to join the Abraham Accords, the 2020 agreement that normalised ties between Israel and several Arab nations. However, the Middle Eastern leader made clear this would be conditional on progress towards Palestinian statehood.

"We want to be part of the accord, but we also want to be sure that we secure a clear path to a two-state solution," the crown prince said."We want them to coexist peacefully in the region, and we will do our best to reach a deal."

In a potentially significant shift, Trump announced plans to sell advanced F-35 stealth fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, ending Israel's exclusive access to the aircraft in the region. The move could alter the military balance in the Middle East, though the US has long maintained a policy commitment to Israel's "qualitative military edge" over regional neighbours. /p>

- ANI