Israel Plans on Selling New Missile System to United Arab Emirates
Jose Nino
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According to a report by Press TV, Israeli has reportedly approved a plan to sell a surface-to-air missile system to the United Arab Emirates.
Israel has ostensibly agreed to supply the UAE with Rafael-made SPYDER mobile interceptors.
In addition, the report noted that the Israeli missile technology would allow the UAE “to prevent a repeat of the drone attacks that hit Abu Dhabi earlier this year.”
PressTV highlighted that the SPYDER system is manufactured in Israel and “can act against low-altitude threats, including drones, cruise missiles and helicopters” and are “fitted to vehicles and used against short to long-range threats.”
The details of this deal are still rather murky. Similarly, the quantity of interceptors that Israel is supposed to supply and the status of their shipment has not been determined yet.
On September 20, 2022, Ram Ben-Barak, the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman of the Knesset (Israeli Parliament), refused to comment on this issue. He only stated that there exists a broad strategic partnership between Israel and the UAE.
According to a report by Reuters, the UAE has been desperately trying to strengthen its air defense after suffering multiple airstrikes and drone operations in January and February at the hands of the Yemeni Houthi rebels.
The UAE is a co-belligerent in the war in Yemen that is being led by Saudi Arabia.
The Arab kingdom launched its brutal military operation in Yemen back in 2015 in order to suppress the Houthi Ansarullah movement and prop up the previous pro-Saudi regime.
The UAE was previously dialing up its military campaign in Ma’rib and Shabwah provinces. On top of that, it has been launching an increased amount of airstrikes all over Yemen. These strikes have resulted in an alarming level of civilian deaths, especially among children.
As a response to the Saudi-led coalition’s ramped up military operations, the Yemeni rebels have responded in kind with their own military operations. The Houthi’s retaliatory campaigns have involved them launching counterstrikes against both Saudi Arabia and UAE.
After signing the Abraham Accords back in August 2020, Israel and the UAE have entered a series of deals in areas concerning aviation, finance, and tourism.
Back in January 2022, Israeli President Isaac Herzog paid a visit to the UAE. In January 18, Israel offered the UAE assistance on matters of security and intelligence to help it stymie drone attacks being conducted by the Houthi rebels.
Overall, how Israel and the UAE want to handle foreign policy matters is ultimately between themselves. That’s their prerogative as sovereign nations.
However, the United States should stop giving these countries blind support and aso cease trying to build hostile balancing coalitions against countries like Iran. The less the US gets involved in the internal and foreign policy affairs of Middle Eastern countries, the more stable the region will end up becoming.
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