Pentagon Agrees To Sell 36 F-15s To Qatar In A $12 Billion Deal

An F-15E Strike Eagle takes off. U.S. AIR FORCE, SENIOR AIRMAN THOMAS SPANGLER

Bloomberg: Qatar Signs $12 Billion Deal for U.S. F-15 Jets Amid Gulf Crisis

* Contract comes as Qatar seeks easing of Saudi-led embargo
* Decision is latest in string of mixed messages from the U.S.

Qatar will sign a deal to buy as many as 36 F-15 jets from the U.S. as the two countries navigate tensions over President Donald Trump’s backing for a Saudi-led coalition’s move to isolate the country for supporting terrorism.

Qatari Defense Minister Khalid Al-Attiyah and his U.S. counterpart, Jim Mattis, completed the $12 billion agreement on Wednesday in Washington, according to the Pentagon.

The sale “will give Qatar a state of the art capability and increase security cooperation and interoperability between the United States and Qatar,” the Defense Department said in a statement.

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WNU Editor: Talk about giving mixed signals as the crisis between Qatar and its neighbourscontinues. On a side note, this was suppose to be a $21 billion deal .... US-Qatar fighter jet sale worth $21B in middle of diplomatic crisis (Defense News)

Update: No kidding .... US' Mattis: Qatar blockade 'very complex situation' (Al Jazeera).