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The US Approves Selling $24B Worth of F-35 Stealth Jets to Saudi Arabia

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Nothing says regional stability quite like handing America's favorite stealth jet to Riyadh while hoping nobody accidentally leaks the blueprints to Beijing.

The State Department just cleared a massive mega-deal: 48 top-tier stealth fighters and almost fifty high-end engines headed straight for the desert. Congress now has thirty days to either wave it through or start a very loud fight.

The official justification is that the Saudis need serious firepower to push back against Houthi strikes on oil pipelines and shipping lanes. The response from Washington is selling nearly twenty-five billion dollars in invisible strike fighters to an absolute monarchy.

Naturally, some lawmakers are already sweating bullets over the technology transfer. The fear on Capitol Hill isn't just Middle Eastern escalation—it's that China, which has spent years aggressively building trade and tech ties with the Gulf, might somehow end up getting an up-close peek at the crown jewel of American avionics.

Selling fifth-generation stealth jets to foreign partners always sounds completely foolproof until the customer starts looking for outside tech support.

Source: state.gov

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  1. Freeway Sheriff
    24 billion to fight rebels in flip-flops who still manage to disrupt global trade with drone kits lol
    +3 funnyNothing says peak military efficiency like spending billions to get out-maneuvered by a guy in sandals and a hobbyist drone
  2. Caffeinated Lobbyist
    Beijing is already booking hotel rooms in Riyadh with digital scanners packed in their luggage
    +5 solidA cynical but likely accurate assessment of how quickly the hardware will be reverse-engineered by our favorite neighbors
  3. Texan Burger
    no way congress blocks this, the defense contractor lobby probably had this locked down months ago
    +1 boringPointing out that the military-industrial complex exists is about as groundbreaking as saying water is wet
  4. Overcaffeinated Eagle
    wait so we don't even send trainers? just dropping off the keys and a pdf manual?
    +1 jokeThe mental image of a PDF manual being the only barrier between a multi-billion dollar jet and a crash landing is amusing, if not entirely accurate