F-35s, chips but no security guarantees: What MBS achieved — and didn’t — in Washington
A Saudi-US defense deal signed by Trump and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House fell short of the de facto Saudi leader's ambitions for a US defense guarantee, but neither side appears in much of a hurry since the US military knocked out Iran's nuclear enrichment in June.
WASHINGTON — Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's state visit to the United States this week resulted in some significant gains for the kingdom’s access to sensitive US technology, but fell short of achieving the major strategic concessions sought by the Saudi leader.
The high-profile visit marked a political win for the crown prince, as the White House has moved to rehabilitate his image after his alleged role in the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi dealt a major blow to US-Saudi ties.
And it also brought material gains, including US President Donald Trump’s approval for plans to sell Saudi Arabia dozens of F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets and the lifting of US export controls on advanced semiconductors. The two sides also inked a slew of broader agreements on critical minerals sharing, nuclear energy cooperation and collaboration on artificial intelligence.
If approved by Congress, the F-35 sale would make Saudi Arabia the first Arab nation to possess the stealth-capable aircraft, potentially tilting the balance of offensive military power in the Middle East toward the Gulf by undercutting Israel’s monopoly on stealth strike capabilities.
