US plans arms sale to Saudi Arabia

By Yu Miao

The US plans to offer Saudi Arabia $60 billion worth of hi-tech fighters and helicopters to help counter the threat posed by Iran, in Saudi Arabia's largest-ever single foreign purchase, officials said Monday.

Citing a senior defense official, AFP reported that US President Barack Obama's ad-ministration would formally notify Congress this week or next about the groundbreaking deal, which follows months of talks with the Saudis.

"If you look at the kingdom, the major threat that they face in the region emanates from Iran," AFP quoted the official as saying on the condition of anonymity. "And this gives them a whole host of defensive capabilities to defend the kingdom, and deterrence capabilities."

However, Guo Xiangang, a senior fellow at the China Institute of International Studies, disagreed with those claims.

"There are problems in Iranian-Saudi ties, but definitely not as serious as the ones between Tehran and Tel Aviv. Saying Iran is threatening Saudi Arabia is exaggerating," said Guo, a former diplomat to Tehran. "The Saudi army is not that active in the region. In this case, Riyadh may just help Washington dump some redundant arms. The deal, if approved, is unlikely to affect the political conditions in the region."

According to AFP, in its notification to Congress, the Obama administration will authorize the Saudis to buy as many as 84 new F-15 fighters and upgrade 70 more, as well as three types of helicopters - 70 Apaches, 72 Black Hawks and 36 Little Birds.

The package would also include HARM anti-radar missiles, more precision-guided JDAM bombs, Hellfire missiles and sophisticated displays mounted on pilots' helmets.

Citing US military sources, the Washington Post reported that Boeing - maker of the F-15, the Apaches and the Little Birds - had estimated that the purchase would involve 77,000 jobs in 44 states.

Although previous arms sales to the Saudis have often encountered strong opposition from Israel and its allies in the US Congress, the administration expected the deal to win approval, believing that Israel won't object to the sale.

Tel Aviv will be getting a more advanced, "fifth generation" US fighter jet such as the F-35, AFP quoted the US defense official as saying.

The Obama administration is also in talks with Saudi officials about potential improvements to the kingdom's naval fleet and missile defenses, which could be worth tens of billions of dollars more, the official added.