The Pentagon on Wednesday halted the delivery of four F-16 fighter jets to Egypt as President Barack Obama seeks to impress on the Egyptian military that the United States is unhappy with its handling of the political turmoil in that country, the New York Times reported.
“Given the current situation in Egypt, we do not believe it is appropriate to move forward at this time with the delivery of F-16s,” said Pentagon Press Secretary George Little, as quoted by the Times.
“We’ve been very clear with the military: we understand this is a difficult situation but we want things to get back on track,” an anonymous White House official told the Times, while an unnamed Pentagon official described the move as an “inside fastball.”
Following the ouster of former President Mohamed Morsi, U.S. officials had said they did not plan to change the fighter jet shipment.
