Israel under its current government and regional posture is unlikely to want an equally capable neighbor, especially one that hasn’t normalized ties," said a RANE analyst.

With much fanfare, President Donald Trump announced this week that he and Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had signed a new Strategic Defense Agreement that would include the sale of stealth F-35 fighters to that country, but very few details have emerged about the agreement and what impacts it might have for the Middle East.

PM says Rubio assured him Washington will maintain Israel's regional advantage, in contrast to military's position, which warned air superiority could be eroded The post Netanyahu brushes off Saudi F-35 deal,

Saudi Arabia wants to develop its own nuclear weapons. Failing that, it wishes to partner with nuclear nations—ideally, but not only, the United States—and ingratiate itself into their nuclear programs.

The Prime Minister's spokesperson responded that the US and Israel have a longstanding understanding that Israel must maintain the qualitative edge when it comes to its defense

The fallout was expected in the Arab and Islamic worlds and even in Latin America – regions historically sympathetic to popular struggles against Western power structures and therefore attuned to the suffering in Gaza – but the real rupture has occurred at the core of the West: the US.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday said the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio assured him that American legislation will prevent Saudi Arabia from acquiring the most advanced F-35 warplanes,

Despite announcing sweeping security, investment and defense agreements, the fate of a Saudi-Israel normalization deal remains uncertain