Senators fear that Arab states will purchase fighters from Russia instead of the US
US Senators called on President Barack Obama to push through a contract for the sale of fighter jets valued at $9 billion to Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain. Otherwise, they say, the Arab states may instead purchase aircraft from Russia.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the authors of the letter are Republicans John McCain and Bob Corker, and Democrats Jack Reed and Claire McCaskill. According to them, the decision on the sale of sixty F-16s, F-15s and F-18s has been delayed for too long.
Earlier, the White House expressed concern that the deal would reduce Israel's military superiority in the Middle East. However, according to the senators, there are no grounds for such fears.
"Refusing to sign the contract will not prevent those countries from buying more advanced fighters from foreign suppliers, including, possibly, Russia... The US should not miss the opportunity to expand its influence in the Middle East and ensure its industrial dominance, instead of losing the market to its competitors or adversaries," the letter states.
Earlier it was reported that Obama would approve contracts worth $7 billion for the sale of fighter jets to Kuwait and Qatar at a meeting with the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council on April 21st. However, this did not happen, and Kuwait signed an agreement with the European consortium Eurofighter Typhoon for the supply of 28 fighters.