Israel’s national security head holds first talk with counterpart in Biden administration

Israel’s Meir Ben-Shabbat spoke with the U.S.’ Jake Sullivan on Saturday evening, congratulating him on taking up the office.

By World Israel News Staff and TPS

Israel’s National Security Council head and National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat spoke on Saturday night with US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and congratulated him on taking up office.

This was the first conversation between the two.

The two “agreed to discuss soon the many topics on the agenda including Iran, regional issues and advancing the Abraham Accords,” the Prime Minister’s Office stated.

They spoke just days after the United Arab Emirates closed a last-second deal with the Trump administration for up to 50 F-35 stealth fighters and advanced drones.

Only an hour before President Joe Biden was sworn into office, the outgoing Trump administration completed a deal to sell up to 50 F-35 joint strike fighter aircraft and 18 MQ-9 Reaper drones to the United Arab Emirates, Defense News reported Thursday.

The major arms sale to the Gulf nation that recently signed a peace treaty with Israel was signed only an hour before the presidential inauguration ceremony, the news outlet said, quoting Reuters.

Israel is the only country in the area flying the advanced stealth attack jet. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and defense officials at first strenuously objected to the sale, which they said would adversely impact Israel’s qualitative military edge in the region.