Ben Caspit reported that Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, prefers resorting to quiet pressure fearing harm to Israel’s military edge and his relations with the White House.
The source revealed that Israel would have gone to great lengths, even risking the alliance with the United States, to obstruct the planned sale of F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia and any potential sale to Turkey, if any president other than Donald Trump were in the White House.
However, Netanyahu shows an unwillingness to provoke President Trump, as the latter’s sharp statements seem more pressing for the Israeli Prime Minister, even more so than selling advanced weapons to Turkey, whose president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has made explicit threats against Israel in recent years.
In this context, a high-level Israeli diplomatic source stated that there are doubts about President Trump knowing the extent of his influence over Netanyahu, pointing out that the Prime Minister made a strategic decision to avoid any confrontation with the US President.
This story unfolded during a secret meeting held by Netanyahu on the evening of December 1, 2025, in his Jerusalem office with Frank St. John, Chief Operating Officer of Lockheed Martin, the main contractor for the production of F-35 aircraft.
The main objective of the meeting was to discuss how to maintain Israel’s qualitative military edge in the Middle East in the event that other countries in the region obtain these advanced fighters.
Sources familiar with the details of the meeting described it as “long and frustrating” for the Israeli side.
The United States succeeded in removing Turkey from the F-35 program during Trump’s first term, after Ankara purchased the S-400 air defense system from Russia, but in light of the recent rapprochement between Trump and Erdoğan, the President might work to lift the ban specifically on the F-35 fighters.
At the same time, President Trump confirmed that he would offer F-35 jets for sale to Riyadh.
Lockheed Martin organized a visit to Qatar on November 3, which included leading a large team to Saudi Arabia.
Despite this, the readiness to support Turkey with the decisive weapon provided by the supply of F-35 fighters remains a source of concern for Netanyahu, as Turkey, with an air force equipped with advanced fighters, represents a real challenge to the Israeli Air Force.
Hebrew sources point to a speech delivered by Erdoğan in July 2024, in which he said that Turkey must be strong so that “Israel cannot carry out these absurd acts against Palestine,” and added: “Just as we entered Karabakh, and just as we entered Libya, we may do something similar with them” (the Israelis).
A high-ranking Israeli military source mentioned that the main concern is due to the F-35’s built-in stealth capability and its autonomous control systems, which Israel has been able to use against the Iranians, but which could be exploited similarly against Tel Aviv.
The sources explain that the aircraft’s ability to take off from anywhere in the Middle East and suddenly appear in Israeli airspace constitutes a situation that Tel Aviv finds difficult to tolerate or accept.
Maariv, via Al-Monitor, quoted a prominent analyst as saying that before the expected meeting between Netanyahu and Trump on December 29 in Mar-a-Lago, Netanyahu is expected to try to influence the President’s decision and explain Israeli concerns about the change in long-standing US policy.
Observers believe that Netanyahu is applying subtle pressure on Trump’s implicitly pro-Israel aides, including Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, UN Ambassador-designate Mike Waltz, and Republican donors such as Miriam Adelson.
However, a high-ranking Israeli source points out that this perception differs from the Democratic administrations against which Netanyahu exerted intensive pressure in Congress and with the help of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), as these options are not available now in the face of President Trump, for whom keeping Israel on his side is critically important.
Despite the aircraft issue, a number of other issues will be raised in Netanyahu’s meeting with Trump, including the President’s efforts to implement the second phase of the peace plan in Gaza, efforts to reach a de-escalation agreement between Israel and Syria, and efforts to disarm Hezbollah in Lebanon. President Trump pays great attention to these issues, and Netanyahu does not want to be an obstacle to them, but narrowing the gaps represents a major challenge for the Israeli Prime Minister.
Source: Maariv
United News Network – UNN Arabic
An independent media platform that provides reliable news and objective analysis, and seeks to promote peace and cultural dialogue around the world, to convey the truth and build bridges of understanding between peoples.
For more news, you can visit our homepage:
