JavaScript is disabled! Why you want to do so? Please enable JavaScript in your web browser!
“With the agreement of Israel and the Pentagon, the Moroccan army will have, in a few months, a document which will authorize and formalize the upcoming acquisition of its first F-35 Lokheed Martin,” we read in a published article on the Jewish Identity website. Military expert Abdelhamid Harifi, contacted by Médias 24, demented this information: “Morocco has not concluded an agreement to acquire the F-35 Lokheed Martin”.
He explains that certain articles mention this rumor “since the reestablishment of relations between Morocco and Israel”, but this has “never concluded with an official announcement or by a request from the Pentagon to receive authorization from Congress for the export of F-35s to Morocco.
A newspaper with a confidential audience
Presented as an Israeli newspaper, Jewish Identitysource of this new rumor about the F-35, is in fact a site published in France. Its average audience is 100 readings (!) per day, or 3,000 per month. On the audience criterion, it is ranked among the bottom 5,850,000.
When signed, the articles are always flanked by the same nickname, “Ftouh”. The use of the conditional is very present in the content, which is rarely proof of credibility.
The article itself, the subject of so many copies, even in Bulgaria, was published on November 24. This means that the buzz is a little late.
So let’s forget this source, and see if such a scenario is plausible in the future.
Trump and Morocco’s arms sale
The arrival of Donald Trump at the White House could change the situation. “We may develop contracts, including the MQ-9, Rupert drones, or towards the end of Trump’s mandate, perhaps, we will talk about the F-35,” believes the military expert.
Abdelhamid Harifi underlines that in Morocco, with the current means, the operational needs of the various army corps, the current programs, it is unthinkable to say that the country plans to acquire the F-35. “There are priorities such as the renewal of the transport aircraft fleet or the helicopter fleet.”
“The acquisition of F-35s is not on the agenda”
“The acquisition of the F-35 is not on the agenda, but it is not a completely ruled out possibility either, perhaps in the medium or long term, because we have end-of-life aircraft, including the F-5 and the Mirage F-1we must think about renewing them”. The expert mentions in particular “the Algerian threat” and that, in this case, Morocco must equip itself with “dissuasive means and means to respond to any threat, and the In the long term, the acquisition of the F-35 could be part of this perspective.” Abdelhamid Harifi adds that “we have technological superiority at the air level thanks to the technology of our latest F-16. If the acquisition of the F-35 is inevitable, I think it will be an option that will be delayed as long as possible.
For the moment, the Kingdom is engaged in two major acquisition programs: the purchase and modernization of the F-16 fleet, and the purchase and commissioning of Apache combat helicopters.
Do you have a real estate project in mind? Yakeey & Médias24 help you make it happen!
© Media24. Any reproduction prohibited, in any form whatsoever, without written authorization from the Société des Nouveaux Médias. This content is protected by law and in particular law 88-13 relating to the press and publishing as well as laws 66.19 and 2-00 relating to copyright and related rights.
