UAE has Frozen F-35 Purchase Talks, Washington Says End-user Requirements Nonnegotiable
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has frozen talks with the U.S. over its $23bn deal to buy 50 F-35 fighter jets besides General Atomics drones over American conditions that forced Abu Dhabi to ‘re-assess’ the planned acquisition.
An Emirati official said in a statement to select international media that Abu Dhabi had informed Washington that “technical requirements, sovereign operational restrictions and cost-benefit analysis led to the reassessment.”
Meanwhile, Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby said today, “We will always insist, as a matter of statutory requirements and policy, on a variety of end-user requirements. That’s typical. And these end-user requirements and protection of U.S. defense equipment are universal, nonnegotiable and not specific to the UAE.”