Key Points and Summary – President Donald Trump’s signal that the U.S. will sell F-35s to Saudi Arabia is just one piece of a much broader strategic agenda as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman visits Washington.
-Riyadh wants long-term security guarantees, deeper trade and tech ties, and a central role in regional diplomacy after helping midwife Syria’s political reset.
F-35I Adir Israel Stealth Fighter. Image Credit: IDF
-The F-35s symbolize U.S. commitment, but also raise questions about Israel’s qualitative military edge and potential Saudi entry into an Abraham Accords-style framework—conditioned, Riyadh insists, on a credible path to Palestinian statehood.
-The deal would be a single brick in a far larger U.S.–Saudi alliance.
F-35s for Saudi Arabia Are Just the Start of Trump–MBS Mega Deal
The United States could move forward with a sale of F-35s to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, President Donald Trump indicated on November 17. The comments came as Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, was arriving in Washington for a meeting with the president.
The F-35s are only one part of a much larger series of deals and discussions that Riyadh is seeking in Washington.
Asked about the F-35s, Trump said, “I will say that we will be doing that. We’ll be selling F-35s,” according to reports. The F-35 is a symbol of being a close ally and partner of the United States. When it comes to Riyadh, this is important because Saudi Arabia has been a key US partner for around 80 years. However, many things have changed over the last decades.
Saudi History
Saudi Arabia was a key friend of the US during the Cold War. It was also a bulwark of stability in the Islamic world, even as many other parts of the Middle East were at war. For instance, not only was it a friend of the US during the Cold War, but it also helped shore up US influence in the region after the fall of the Shah and the rise of the Iranian Islamic Revolution. Arms sales went hand in hand with this as a symbol of commitment.
Saudi Arabia acquired Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) in the 1980s. However, the arms were not enough to protect the Kingdom against stronger enemies. When Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, the US rushed soldiers to Saudi Arabia.
Not everything was rosy; the presence of US forces angered extremists such as Osama Bin Laden. It took years for Riyadh and other Gulf states to crack down on the extremists who seemed to flow out of Pandora’s box from the 1980s to the early 2000s.
Over the last two decades of the Global War on Terror, much has changed in Saudi Arabia and in its ties to the US. Riyadh has moved beyond being an economy rooted in oil, and it is investing heavily in technology and other alternative energy sources. It has become more cautious about putting all its eggs in the American relationship basket.
Difficult relations with the Obama administration’s policy on Iran and a disagreement with the Biden administration’s approach to the Houthis have led Riyadh to balance ties with the US. The balance means that Riyadh looks to Turkey, Qatar, India, and other countries as models of how countries can be friends or allies of the US but also have independent policies.
Saudi Agenda
While F-35s may be in the spotlight in some reports, the media in Riyadh takes a different view of the Crown Prince’s visit. Dr. Abdel Aziz Aluwaisheg, the GCC Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs and Negotiation, wrote in Arab News about how Saudi Arabia played a key role in arranging a May 2025 meeting between Trump and Syria’s new President, Ahmed al-Shara’a. Shara’a was recently at the White House, which shows how Riyadh’s gamble has paid off.
“On trade, more work needs to be done. Last year, the two-way trade in goods was about $26 billion, which is quite low considering the potential of the two countries and about a quarter of Saudi-China trade,” Aluwaisheg wrote at Arab News. Faisal Abbas, the Editor-in-Chief of Arab News, wrote that “the US needs a partner that commands respect in the region. Saudi Arabia fits that role. Whether it is lifting sanctions or brokering peace, American policymakers know that Riyadh’s guarantees carry weight. The emergence of a new Syria—after decades of turmoil—is testament to that influence.”
This sentiment is why the F-35 deal is more about a larger constellation of ties. Energy, trade, commercial aircraft deals, air defenses, technology, and also potential Saudi-Israel ties are all issues up for discussion.
Where the F-35 is symbolic is in what it means for the region, Israel, and the US.
According to a Lockheed Martin fact sheet published in September, there are 20 program participants in the F-35 program. These include the US, UK, Italy, Netherlands, Canada, Australia, Denmark, and Norway.
In addition, the plane has been sold via foreign military sales to Israel, Japan, South Korea, Belgium, Finland, Singapore, Switzerland, Poland, Germany, the Czech Republic, Greece, and Romania. If F-35s are sold to Saudi Arabia, it would be the second Middle East country using them after Israel. But this will take time. Greece was the 19th country to join the program and signed a deal in 2024. It is expected to take delivery of the first planes in 2028. This timeline suggests that a Saudi deal would likely take many years to see the aircraft flying in the Kingdom.
Strengthening Bond With Saudi Arabia
What is most important to Riyadh is the US commitment to the Kingdom. The F-35 represents a long-term commitment. It is the premier 5th-generation aircraft made by America. It has also demonstrated that it can carry out the required missions. Israel has used it against the Houthis and Iran in long-range operations.
Israel was the first to use it in combat in 2018. As such, it’s clear this is a workhorse aircraft that suits the Saudis. However, as recent deals for the F-15s have shown, there is much demand for warplanes that goes beyond the F-35. Saudi Arabia is also a keen user of the F-15.
Israeli media is circumspect about what might come next. The Times of Israel noted on November 17 that “Israel reportedly was hoping that the US would condition the sale on Saudi Arabia agreeing to join the Abraham Accords.”
An Israeli Air Force pilot walks to an F-35I Adir prior to a Red Flag-Nellis 23-2 mission at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, March 15, 2023. Red Flag is an opportunity to build on the success of JUNIPER OAK 23-2, JUNIPER FALCON, and additional combined exercises to enhance interoperability with Israel, strengthen bilateral cooperation, and improve capabilities in ways that enhance and promote regional stability and reinforce the United States’ enduring commitment to Israel’s security. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Trevor Bell)
An Israeli Air Force pilot climbs into an F-35I Adir prior to a Red Flag-Nellis 23-2 mission at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, March 16, 2023. Red Flag is an opportunity to build on the success of JUNIPER OAK 23-2, JUNIPER FALCON, and additional combined exercises to enhance interoperability with Israel, strengthen bilateral cooperation, and improve capabilities in ways that enhance and promote regional stability and reinforce the United States’ enduring commitment to Israel’s security. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Trevor Bell)
Ynet, a prominent Israeli daily, said the “sale would mark a significant policy shift, potentially altering the military balance in the Middle East and testing Washington’s definition of maintaining Israel’s ‘qualitative military edge'”
In Saudi Arabia, Abbas, an Arab News columnist, noted in his column about the Saudi trip to Washington, “this visit is not ceremonial. It is consequential. If Israel is ready to commit to a serious path toward Palestinian statehood, it could join what the crown prince calls “the new Europe”—a region of integration, cooperation and shared prosperity. The stakes are high. The opportunity is rare. And the moment is now.”
As such, it is clear that Riyadh continues to hold out a hand for peace.
However, it wants to see a shift in Jerusalem’s rhetoric on a Palestinian state. It has stood by the Palestinians for decades. Israeli officials have become even more strident in opposing a state, with Israel’s Defense Minister and Prime Minister both saying they oppose a state in the days before the Saudi Crown Prince went to Washington.
The Trump administration wants deals and investment. It has often received what it wanted from Riyadh, Doha, and other Gulf countries in the past. As such, the F-35 potential deal would only be one brick in a much larger foundation of US-Saudi ties aimed at cementing a future alliance.
About the Author: Seth Frantzman
Seth Frantzman is the author of The October 7 War: Israel’s Battle for Security in Gaza (2024) and an adjunct fellow at The Foundation for Defense of Democracies. He is a Senior Middle East Analyst for The Jerusalem Post. Seth is now a National Security Journal Contributing Editor.
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Krystal cane
November 18, 2025 at 10:47 am
Is the story Donald Trump gave me bought and paid for with a shiny nickel