Israel has signed a contract to purchase 20 US-built and -funded F-35 stealth fighter jets, a deal the country boasts as "an event of great strategic and historic significance", Press TV reported
Israeli Defense Ministry Director General Udi Shani signed the agreement, worth nearly $3 billion, during a ceremony in New York on Thursday, Israeli daily Haaretz reports, noting that "the entire deal will be funded by the American military."
According to the deal, Israel will receive the attack aircrafts between 2015 and 2017, at a price of $96 million per plane, together with simulators and spare parts, with a total price tag of $2.75 billion. The deal also grants Israel the option of ordering 75 more jets.
"This is a significant day for maintaining Israel's military superiority in the region, which will help us cope with challenges both near and far," Shani said, quoted by the Israeli-based Ynet news website, after a signing ceremony.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also hailed the purchase, saying it would significantly strengthen Israel's military.
Israeli Knesset (parliament) and security establishment also gave their approval for the agreement despite "opposition" from a number of senior defense officials over the "high cost" of the deal.
The signing comes less than a month after Washington announced plans to sell Saudi Arabia 60 billion dollars' worth of weapons and hardware, including 84 F-15 fighters.