Combat aircraft from Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia took part in a display of force alongside US nuclear-capable B1 bombers over the Middle East on Thursday in the Pentagon’s latest demonstration to Iran.
Aircraft from five Middle Eastern militaries linked up with a pair of US Air Force B1-B Lancers as they transited the Persian Gulf region after taking off from the UK, US military officials said.
The demonstration culminated with the American bombers dropping live munitions at training ranges in Saudi Arabia and Jordan before flying back to base in Spain. The B-1Bs dropped “multiple” air-launched JASSM cruise missiles and 600-pound GBU-38 bombs at “multiple simulated targets” during the exercise, a defense official told Al-Monitor.
The Pentagon is withholding the identity of two of the Middle Eastern countries that took in the exercise at their request, officials said.
Why it matters: The US has periodically sent nuclear-capable bomber task force missions over the Middle East in recent years in a bid to deter attacks by Iran, which US officials say continues to seek to expel American forces from the region.
Arab and Israeli fighter planes have flown alongside US bomber missions in the past, but the deployment of live munitions at multiple sites marks a new step in regional cooperation.
“These bomber missions represent the US’s commitment to our partners and showcase our ability to deliver overwhelming power at a moment’s notice,” the top commander of US Air Force units in the Middle East, Lt. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, said in a statement.
“Together, we are operationalizing concepts designed to make us more agile in our execution, more strategic in our deterrence, and more resilient in our capability,” Grynkewich said.
The show of force comes as top US diplomat Antony Blinken visited Saudi Arabia amid Washington’s push for normalization with Israel while seeking to assuage concerns that Washington has been abandoning its defense commitments to the region.
In January, US B-52 bombers escorted by Israeli fighter jets dropped live munitions on mock targets in Israel’s Negev Desert in a long-range strategic air exercise which former senior US officials described to Al-Monitor as indicative of the Pentagon’s tactics to potentially knock out Iran’s nuclear sites.
Senior military officials under the Biden administration have said they hope to include other militaries in the Middle East in similar air exercises. However, many in the region remain reluctant to be seen as part of a US- and Israeli-led bloc oriented against Iran.
Know more: The bomber overflight comes as military forces from the US and Gulf Cooperation Council countries are participating in a two-week series of exercises to integrate air and missile defense cooperation.
American defense officials have made strides in convincing Arab counterparts to share air defense data and partake in maritime security patrols in a bid to thwart Iran’s attacks. But trust remains low between some countries in the Gulf region, inhibiting cooperation which Pentagon officials say is necessary.
The commander of all US forces in the Middle East, US Army Gen. Michael “Erik” Kurilla, discussed ways forward on multinational military cooperation with top regional defense chiefs in Saudi Arabia, Israel, the UAE, Iraq, Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan during a two-week tour of the region last month.
Kurilla also met with Emirati President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani during stops in those countries.
