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Japan, Britain and Italy are considering inviting Saudi Arabia to join their next-generation fighter jet development project with its financial support, a British government source said Friday.
Britain is looking to provide support for engineers in the Middle Eastern nation and its defense industry in return for its financial contribution to the trilateral project, under which the three countries aim to deploy the first jet by 2035, the source said.
The source, meanwhile, said Saudi Arabia is unlikely to become an equal partner, as some officials of the other three governments are concerned about its cybersecurity and defense technology as well as cultural differences.
Announced in December 2022, the joint program comes as Japan and European countries are deepening security cooperation in recent years amid China’s provocative activities in the Indo-Pacific region and Russia’s protracted invasion of Ukraine.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and his British and Italian counterparts, Keir Starmer and Giorgia Meloni, reaffirmed their commitment to the joint development, dubbed the Global Combat Air Program, during their meeting in Brazil earlier this month on the fringes of the Group of 20 summit in Rio de Janeiro.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (L), British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (C) and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba meet for talks on the fringes of the Group of 20 meeting in Rio de Janeiro on Nov. 19, 2024. (Kyodo)
According to the British government, the three leaders “discussed their ambition to widen participation to a broader range of international partners in future,” without mentioning any specific nations.
Saudi Arabia, a major oil exporter and financial power, has been interested in participating in the project, while London has been open to enlisting it as a fourth partner, British media outlets reported earlier.
Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., Britain’s BAE Systems plc, and Italy’s Leonardo S.p.A. will lead the joint development.
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