The United States plans to sell 20 heavy cargo aircraft and five refueling planes worth $6.7 billion to Saudi Arabia, the Pentagon says.
Lockheed C-130 Hercules
credit: Wikipedia
According to a Friday Pentagon statement, the cost of training, logistical support, parts and associated equipment for the aircraft have been included in the multibillion-dollar deal.
It added a notice of the military deal, which needs the approval of the US legislative, was sent to Congress on Thursday.
The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency says C-130J-30 Super Hercules planes and KC-130J aircraft — an extended-range tanker version of the C-130s — would replace with Saudi Arabia’s “aging fleet.”
The aircraft sale would “contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to improve the security of a friendly country that has been, and continues to be, an important force for political stability and economic progress in the Middle East,” the Pentagon said.
Riyadh has significantly increased its military spending in recent years.
The kingdom, which signed a $60 billion arms deal with Washington in 2010, was the biggest arms buyer among developing countries in 2011.
DB/AZ
Article from Press TV
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