Netanyahu says UAE deal did not change Israeli policy on U.S. arms sales

FILE PHOTO: Israel's Economy Minister Eli Cohen poses for a picture at his office in the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, in Jerusalem November 22, 2017. Picture taken November 22, 2017. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel has not softened its opposition to any U.S. arms sales to the United Arab Emirates that could diminish its military superiority as part of the U.S.-brokered normalisation of their ties, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Tuesday.

The statement followed a report in Israel's Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper that the Trump administration planned a "giant" sale of advanced F-35 jets to United Arab Emirates as part of the Gulf country's move last week to normalise ties with Israel.