UAE: The UAE suspends negotiations with the United States on a US$23 billion arms deal

The United Arab Emirates suspended a $23 billion negotiation on Tuesday to purchase U.S.-made F-35 aircraft, armed drones and other equipment, a rare dispute between Washington and America’s main allies in the Persian Gulf. The UAE Embassy in Washington stated that it will “suspend discussions with the United States”, but this week’s meeting on other issues at the Pentagon will proceed as planned.

“The United States is still UAEThe U.S. Embassy said in a statement that it may reopen the preferred supplier for advanced defense requirements and F-35 discussions in the future.

Recommended for sale 50 F-35 The arrival in the UAE came at the end of the administration of former President Donald Trump, and the agreement made the Emirati formally recognize Israel.

President Joe Biden’s government shelved the deal after he took office, partly because of criticism of the UAE and Saudi Arabia’s years of war in Yemen, which triggered one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises and has been Continue to this day.

The transaction also includes 18 sets of advanced drone systems and a set of air-to-air and air-to-ground ammunition.

UAE officials accused the U.S. of insisting on restricting the use and location of F-35s and claimed that they violated the sovereignty of the UAE.

The U.S. State Department stated in a statement that the government “remains committed to the proposed sales…even if we continue to negotiate to ensure that we have a clear and mutual understanding of the UAE’s obligations and actions before, during and after delivery. ”

A person familiar with the matter said that the United States believes that the UAE’s current move is a negotiation strategy, trying to promote this process. The person, who was not authorized to comment on condition of anonymity, said that the letter from the UAE informing the United States of the suspension was written by a relatively low-level official.

“The Wall Street Journal” first disclosed the news of the suspension of the negotiations.

The UAE has long been cooperating with the United States to counter terrorism and allowed entry of people fleeing Afghanistan during the US’s chaotic withdrawal earlier this year. But the tension between Washington and Abu Dhabi has been exacerbated by the growing cooperation between the UAE and China.

Last week, a senior UAE diplomat admitted that the UAE had stopped building Chinese facilities in the port of Abu Dhabi, which the United States considers to be a military base. The Wall Street Journal first disclosed the existence of so-called facilities.

Diplomat Anwar Gargash said at a meeting of the Institute of Arab Gulf States in Washington: “We have considered these concerns of the United States and stopped the construction of facilities.” “But our position remains the same. These facilities are not A real military installation.”

He described the discussions between the UAE and the United States as “very frank”.