A Chinese fighter jet performs a dangerous maneuver against an American spy plane (US Army)
Egypt has begun negotiating with China for a series of major arms deals. The deals will include, inter alia, the purchase of advanced fighter jets, air defense systems and suicide drones.
Egypt has already purchased outdated fighter jets and trainer planes from China in the past, and Saudi Arabia has also purchased missiles from the communist power. But this time we are talking about a series of deals for advanced weapons systems, the purchase of which will reduce both countries' technical and political dependence on American weapons and give China a strengthened foothold in the region.
Egypt, which switched to American weapons following the signing of the peace treaty with Israel, has purchased French Rafale fighter jets in recent years, but its air force is still based mostly on American F-16s.
At the same time, Saudi Arabia is trying to obtain American – and Israeli – approval to purchase F-35 stealth fighter jets alongside uranium enrichment capability, and it is possible that the negotiations with the Chinese are intended to exert pressure on the United States to advance the deal, which is supposed to advance a peace agreement with Israel on the other hand.
Egypt is expected to make a series of arms deals with China (Photo: Reuters)
Egypt and Saudi Arabia are frustrated by the American conduct, which has often delayed the supply of weapons to both countries in recent years, including interceptor missiles for the Patriot system that Riyadh needed following missile attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels, over criticism of their civil rights practices and the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
One of the most prominent weapons systems mentioned in reports of the deals is the Chinese J10C fighter, the most advanced version of the aircraft produced since 2002, equipped with advanced radar, a powerful engine, and considered one of the most advanced non-stealth fighters.
The plane bears many external resemblances to the Israeli Lavi fighter plane developed by IAI for the Ministry of Defense and the Air Force, and its construction was canceled in 1987, due to American pressure. This was due to concerns that it would constitute competition in the F-16 export markets and due to the project's rising costs, which the defense budget had difficulty meet. According to foreign reports, Israel sold the plane's plans to China, which wanted to develop an advanced self-made fighter jet for the first time, and Chinese engineers visited IAI.
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Lavi plane, Lod 1986 (Photo: Reuven Castro)
The J10 made its maiden flight in 1998, initially equipped with a Russian engine, which was later replaced by a Chinese-made engine. It's slightly larger than the Lavi, its air intake is designed differently, but it's equipped with the same body configuration, including Kennard front wings for improved maneuverability. It is different in shape from any other fighter jet built by China before, and from the advanced stealth aircraft it built later.
The Chengdu company that manufactures it continued to improve it, upgraded its systems, and it also received more advanced armaments. China has produced more than 600 such planes for its air force and naval aircraft carriers, and last year sold them to a foreign country for the first time. This is Pakistan, which ordered 36 planes in response to the Indian buildup.
Weapons expected to be included in the deal with Saudi Arabia are reconnaissance and observation drones that take off and land vertically, suicide drones, also known as loitering munitions, non-disposable attack drones capable of releasing munitions and returning to base for further sorties, and short-range air defense systems.
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