US Designates Saudi Arabia a Major Non-NATO Ally, Clears Path for F-35 Deal

Updated by Faith Barbara N Ruhinda at 1058 EAT on Wednesday 19 November 2025

During a state visit to Washington, D.C., President Donald Trump formally designated Saudi Arabia as a major non-NATO ally of the United States, marking a significant deepening of military and strategic ties between the two countries.

The announcement came as Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met with Trump to finalize a sweeping agreement covering arms sales, civil nuclear cooperation, artificial intelligence and critical minerals.

At a black-tie dinner at the White House on Tuesday evening, Trump said he was elevating “military cooperation to even greater heights” by conferring the new status on Saudi Arabia.

Trump said the designation was “something that is very important to them, and I’m just telling you now for the first time because I wanted to keep a little secret for tonight.”

Major non-NATO ally status grants a partner expanded military and economic privileges but does not include a mutual defense commitment.

Trump also announced that the two countries had signed a “historic strategic defence agreement.”

According to a White House fact sheet, the deal “fortifies deterrence across the Middle East,” facilitates operations for U.S. defence firms in Saudi Arabia, and secures “new burden-sharing funds from Saudi Arabia to defray U.S. costs.”

The White House added that Trump had approved future deliveries of F-35 fighter jets to the kingdom, which in turn agreed to purchase 300 U.S.-made tanks.

The move marks a significant policy shift by Washington and could reshape the military balance in the Middle East, where U.S. law requires that Israel maintain a “qualitative military edge.” Until now, Israel has been the only country in the region operating the F-35.

Asked by Al Jazeera’s Kimberly Halkett about the implications of the fighter jet sale for Israel’s qualitative military edge, Trump acknowledged that Israel would prefer Riyadh receive aircraft of “reduced calibre.”

“I don’t think that makes you too happy,” Trump said, addressing the crown prince, who was seated beside him at the White House. “They’ve been a great ally. Israel’s been a great ally… As far as I’m concerned, I think they are both at a level where they should get top of the line,” he added, referring to the F-35 deal.

Al Jazeera’s Alan Fisher, reporting from the White House, said that part of the nearly $1 trillion in investment announced by Prince Mohammed in the United States includes $142bn earmarked for the procurement of F-35 fighter jets, “the most advanced of their kind in the world.”

Fisher said the Israeli government and pro-Israel lobbying groups had attempted to block the sale. The agreements announced in Washington, he added, were about “much more” than Saudi investment in the U.S.

“It’s about helping each other’s economy, business and defence. Politics isn’t near the top of the agenda, but both countries believe these deals could create a political reset in the Middle East,” Fisher said.US Designates Saudi Arabia a Major Non-NATO Ally, Clears Path for F-35 Deal

The two countries also signed a joint declaration marking the completion of negotiations on civil nuclear cooperation, which the White House said would establish the legal basis for a long-term nuclear energy partnership with Riyadh.

Israeli officials have signalled that they would not oppose Saudi acquisition of F-35s provided Riyadh normalises relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords framework.

Saudi leaders, however, have maintained that they will join the accords only if there is a credible, guaranteed path to Palestinian statehood — a position Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reiterated during his meeting with Trump, Al Jazeera reported.

“We want to be part of the Abraham Accords, but we want also to be sure that we secure a clear path to a two-state solution,” the crown prince said. “We’re going to work on that to be sure that we come prepared for the situation as soon as possible to have that.”

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