March 10, 1999 (by Lieven Dewitte) -
The United States Thursday agreed to sell Egypt $3.2 billion worth of new American weapons, including 24 F-16 fighter jets, 200 M-1A1 tanks and32 Patriot missiles.
Egypt would pay for the arms from the $1.2 billion a year it gets in U.S. military aid. The 24 F-16 fighters would cost $1.2 billion and would increase a force of 196 F-16s already in Egypt's airforce.
The equipment is unlikely to be delivered for some years because the Patriots are still being developed and the F-16 planes have yet to be built.
Egypt, one of Washington's strongest allies in the Arab world, would receive the "Block 40"model of the F-16, the most advanced version of the world's most popular attack jet. The Pentagon has approved the sales in principle but no deal has been signed yet.
