The Biden administration has postponed the formal notification required for the proposed sale of F-15 fighter jets to Israel, even after senior congressional Democrats removed their hold on the deal last month.
The hold, initially placed by key congressional leaders, including Rep. Gregory Meeks and Sen. Ben Cardin, was lifted after the Biden administration assured them of ongoing consultations and addressed their concerns regarding humanitarian issues and civilian casualties in Gaza.
The $18 billion sale of 50 warplanes represents one of the largest recent arms agreements between the U.S. and Israel. This sale coincides with President Biden navigating internal pressures within his party to leverage American weapon supplies as a means to compel Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to cease hostilities in Gaza. Concurrently, the administration is pressing Israel to ease tensions on its northern border with Lebanon.
A US State Department official informed The Wall Street Journal, "There is no directive to delay transfers to Israel." However, concerns linger within the administration about potential resistance from Congress stemming from this deal. "We are strategically assessing the timing," the official stated. "It's not a matter of if, but when."
As reported by the Times of Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to social media yesterday (Tuesday), criticizing the Biden administration for alleged delays in delivering arms to Israel. In what appears to be a retaliatory move, the White House called off scheduled high-level discussions between American and Israeli security officials in Washington, DC.
