“We’re going to have a deal. They’re going to purchase F-35s. They’re buying them from Lockheed, and it’s a great plane,” stated U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office last week during the visit from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. This news should alarm every American and all friends of Israel.

For all of Saudi Arabia’s perceived importance to the United States, it remains an authoritarian, repressive monarchy whose internal politics are far from stable. Arming such a regime with the most advanced stealth fighter jets carries risks that are just too high for today’s Middle East. Friendly-to-America strongmen rulers can be toppled, policies can shift overnight, and weapons placed in their hands can quickly be beyond U.S. influence or control.

This is not a routine arms sa

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