An F-35 fighter jet trains at Volker Air Force Base, a military base of the Dutch Air Force, Nov. 17, 2020.
The new Biden administration suspended some of its arms sales, including the F-35 arsenal of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in a huge arms sale approved by former President Trump‘s administration, in order to conduct a more meticulous review and look ahead to a slow resumption of diplomatic relations with Iran.
The U.S. government approved 14 arms sales, with a total value of about $26.3 billion, between November 3 last year after the election and January 20 this year during the transition between the old and new administrations. The biggest one is that the Arab League received 50 F-35 warplanes worth $23 billion after normalizing relations with Israel.
Trump sees the normalization of relations between the Arab League and Israel as a major diplomatic success during his term of office and an important part of uniting the region to deal with Iran.
AFP quotes the State Department as saying they are suspending arms sales approved by Trump, including the sale of ammunition to Saudi Arabia and the $23 billion package of F-35 aerial warplanes to the Arab League.
New Secretary of State Antony Blinken said such reviews are routine for any incoming administration to ensure that arms sales “advance our strategic goals.
Blinken also said his priorities also include dealing with the humanitarian crisis in Yemen (Yemen). He also said he would stop supporting Saudi Arabia’s bombing campaign in Yemen, and would review the designation of the Iranian-backed Shiite Houthi organization (Huthi, Youth Movement) as a terrorist organization just before former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo left office.
Pictured, F-35Bs from the U.S. Marine Corps and British Air Force prepare to refuel over the North Sea, Oct. 08, 2020.
Israeli Chief of Staff Kochavi warned on the 27th that he had revised his war plan against Iran, stressing that it would be a “mistake” for the U.S. to return to the nuclear deal.
Iran 22 had called on the Biden Administration to “unconditionally” lift sanctions imposed by the previous administration to save the 2015 nuclear deal, and warned that no concessions would be made. The U.S. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on the 20th that the U.S. hopes to extend and strengthen Iran’s restrictions on nuclear development through diplomatic means, and that this issue will be one of the priorities of President Biden’s talks with foreign heads of state and allies in the early days of his presidency.
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