A Monday report published by Tactical Report, a Beirut-based intelligence service, has claimed that Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI) is currently in talks with China North Industries Group Corporation (Norinco) to buy fighter jets, reconnaissance drones, and air defense systems.
The agency also said negotiations have continued between the Egyptian Air Force and Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group, with the two sides meeting on the sidelines of the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition in Malaysia on Tuesday. Cairo seeks a dozen of Chengdu’s J-10C fighter jets, which have only been sold abroad to Pakistan thus far.
Riyadh is reportedly seeking to acquire the Sky Saker FX80, a truck-launched unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV); the CR500 vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) UAV; Cruise Dragon 5 and 10 loitering munitions; and the HQ-17AE short-range air defense system, which was derived from Russia’s Tor-M1 SHORAD system.
Beijing has expanded its cooperation with Riyadh in recent years on multiple fronts, including economic, military, and diplomatic, recently helping to negotiate a revival of relations with Iran. The Saudi appetite for weapons has also been fueled by its eight-year-long war in Yemen against the Houthi movement, with whom peace talks are presently underway.
Egypt has historically enjoyed a closer relationship with Russia than Saudi Arabia has, and its military equipment is a testament to that: where the Saudis fly US-made F-15s, the Egyptians field Russian-made MiG-29s. Both nations also use US-made F-16s.