Pompeo: The assassination of Soleimani and the sale of F-35 fighters to the UAE contributed to the success of the normalization agreements

Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told the Israeli Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper that the US deal to sell F-35 fighter jets to the UAE and the assassination of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani were an integral part of the normalization agreements with Israel last year.

Pompeo added in an interview with the Israeli newspaper, which will be published in full on Friday, that the leaders of the UAE, before signing the peace agreement with Israel, needed means of encouragement with the aim of informing them that the American side appreciates peace and its importance as a strategic option, as well as saying that the UAE has the ability to be a partner in the security concept. in the region.

The former US Secretary of State stressed that the deal means that the Americans and the Israelis believe that the UAE is able to be a partner in their security aspirations.

Pompeo made it clear that Soleimani's assassination was closely related to the normalization agreements, and that he proved to the world that the United States is determined in its battle against Iran.

He pointed out that the Trump administration's decision to provide Saudi Arabia with defense systems, the decision to move the American embassy to Jerusalem, and the decision in which he declared that not all settlements in the West Bank are illegal, are all decisions that made world leaders, according to Pompeo, know the extent of the Trump administration's insistence and seriousness.

In the interview, Pompeo - who recently visited Israel to attend the retirement ceremony of Mossad chief Yossi Cohen - strongly criticized US President Joe Biden's behavior during the recent Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, stressing that his support for Israel was not without reservation as the Trump administration would have done.

"I think most of the people who watched Biden's performance realized that there was actually a very different message, in that while he was giving words of support to Israel, he was spending money on the Palestinians," Pompeo said.

For several months, Israeli, American, and Emirati officials have publicly denied that the arms deal was part of the negotiations that led to the normalization agreement between Israel and the UAE last year.

But Trump administration officials acknowledged at the time that the agreement put Abu Dhabi in a better position to receive such advanced weapons.