A worried Israel has stalled a US plan to sell advanced weaponry, including satellite-guided arms, to Saudi Arabia, the New York Times reported Thursday.
The Times said on its website that Israeli officials, including former defense minister Shaul Mofaz, have strongly lobbied Washington in recent months to block parts of a planned arms package for the Saudis and unspecified others in the Middle East that could be worth five billion to 10 billion dollars.
Israel is particularly concerned that the United States will supply the Saudis with precision-guided air-based weapons that could erode Israel's military superiority in the region, the newspaper said, citing unnamed US government sources.
"The Israeli complaints have introduced a new uncertainty into the (US) administration's plan to beef up Persian Gulf militaries as a bulwark against Iran and as a demonstration that, no matter what happens in Iraq, Washington remains committed to the Sunni Arab governments around the region," the Times said.
Israel worries both that closer relations envisioned between Washington and Israel on one side and Riyadh on the other might never happen; and that the Saudi regime could give way by revolution to an Islamic fundamentalist government, it said.
