Senate Democrats echoed their House counterparts on Tuesday in expressing concern about President Donald Trump’s announcement of a deal to sell advanced F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), who serves on the Armed Services Committee, told Jewish Insider, “I think there are very serious, potential negative impacts on our national security and they include changing the qualitative edge for Israel, the possibility of a hostile use of them [the jets], the absence of any normalization agreement, which should be part of it, so I think there ought to be very close, critical scrutiny.”

The prospect of advanced weapons sales to Saudi Arabia — along with several other deals announced by Trump on Tuesday with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman — had previously been linked to Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords, something the kingdom is unwilling to do without a “clear path to a two-state solution,” MBS said.

Blumenthal said he was unsure if he would meet with the crown prince during his visit to Washington this week, citing scheduling conflicts. The Connecticut senator said that he’d like to ask MBS about the path forward toward normalization with Israel and the kingdom’s role in the future of Gaza. 

“What’s the path to normalization? Realistically how can we get there as quickly as possible? Because it’s so important to peace and stability in the region,” Blumenthal told JI. “What are the Saudis willing to commit to do for the international security force and for reconstruction of Gaza and financial peace?”

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) described the jets as an “incredibly capable airplane” and noted that “Israel has F-35s, [as do] some of our other allies.” The Arizona senator said that while he supports the U.S. engaging with the Saudis, he had reservations about selling them the jets.

“Is this the step to some kind of bigger security arrangement in the Middle East? We’ll have to see. I think there’s some benefits for Israel and for Saudi Arabia and for the United States if that’s the case,” Kelly told JI. “I am always concerned about our best technology winding up in the proximity of any of our adversaries. The Chinese have been attempting to build a port there in the UAE, that’s pretty close. So I do worry about these things.”

Some in the Defense Department have reportedly expressed concerns that a sale of the jets to Saudi Arabia would provide China with an opportunity to take or compromise sensitive American technologies.

“I have concerns about it, and also about how the Saudis are going to use these planes,” he added.

Kelly said that if he were a member of the Foreign Relations Committee he would want assurances that China would not have access to U.S. technology before approving the sales.

“If I was on SFRC and had the ability to approve this, I’d want a lot of assurances that the Saudis are going to protect that technology,” Kelly said. “The Chinese would love to get close to these airplanes, to get the radar signatures, if they’re not stealing it from us already.”

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee who will have some ability to obstruct or slow the deal, was deeply critical of multiple announcements made by Trump during his White House summit with MBS.

Shaheen said in a statement that the F-35 deal “raises major concerns about protecting U.S. military technology and the military edge America shares with our allies” and demanded the administration “fully explain to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee why this sale is in the vital national interest of the United States.”

The senior Democrat also said that any security agreement made with Saudi Arabia without Senate approval “is very troubling” and would be non-binding and “easily reversed” by a future administration.

“Bypassing Congress on commitments of this scale sets a dangerous precedent, especially after a similar agreement with Qatar without Senate approval,” Shaheen said.

She also said that any nuclear deal with Riyadh, which Trump said on Tuesday he is pursuing, must ensure that it cannot enrich or reprocess nuclear material and include stringent inspections, and warned that “Saudi Arabia’s stated intention to acquire nuclear weapons if Iran does demands extreme caution.”

Shaheen also warned that any deal to provide advanced computer chips to Saudi Arabia must be made in consultation with Congress to protect America’s AI and technological edge over China.

Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), an Armed Services Committee member, indicated support for the deal, saying, “we have strategic partners around the region and this has been a discussion going on for a long time. … It’s, I think, a [move] in the right direction.”

Other Republicans have also backed the president on the issue.

Mullin said he’d also like to see the United Arab Emirates acquire F-35s. During his first term, Trump sealed a deal to sell the jets to the UAE — in connection with the signing of the Abraham Accords — but the Biden administration suspended the deal due to concerns about the UAE’s relationship with China.

The UAE has since expressed it is no longer interested in reopening the deal.

Mullin said he’s planning to meet with the Saudi crown prince on Wednesday if their schedules allow, to “continue [the] conversation” from past meetings.

A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers including Sens. Joni Ernst (R-IA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) criticized the Israeli government on Thursday for carrying out a new round of strikes in Syria, which reportedly killed eight Syrian soldiers.

The statement is one of the most public signs yet of friction between U.S. lawmakers, including some staunch supporters of Israel, and the Israeli government over Israel’s approach to the new Syrian government, which has included repeated rounds of strikes on Syrian targets even amid diplomatic engagements. Many U.S. lawmakers, meanwhile, are urging a more optimistic approach.

“We just returned from Syria, where we heard directly from interim President [Ahmad] Al Sharaa, cabinet ministers and Syrians from across ethnic and religious communities,” the lawmakers said in a joint statement on Wednesday. “The message was clear: Syria needs a chance to succeed and move past the violence and strife that consumed the country for over 14 years. Last night’s destabilizing strikes on Syria by Israel make that goal more difficult to achieve.”

The lawmakers praised the Trump administration for lifting sanctions on Syria and U.S. envoy Tom Barrack for brokering a meeting between the Syrian and Israeli governments. They argued that there is a real but shrinking window for true Syrian-Israeli peace, and said Israel must step up.

“The Syrians are prepared to move forward with Israel to advance peace. It is unclear how long the door to this opportunity will remain open. We call on Israel to seize the moment and immediately cease hostilities so the progress made by Syrians and Special Envoy Barrack can continue,” the lawmakers continued. “A stable and secure Syria is the only path toward freedom from Iran’s reach and containment of the ISIS threat.”

The criticisms are similar to frustrations expressed privately by some Republican senators to Jewish Insider earlier this summer following Israeli strikes targeting the Syrian defense ministry and presidential palace in response to atrocities against Syrian Druze in Sweida.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) told JI in July that Israel’s “security concerns in Syria are legitimate. They’re very important to me, but I also want to help the president with his efforts to integrate the country. So there’s some tension, and I hope we can clear it up.”

He said it would be critical to determine the extent to which the Syrian army has been involved in the atrocities against the Druze and how much control the Syrian government exerts over its coalition and allies. He said that if the Syrian military or government were involved, sanctions should be reinstated.

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, voted with nearly all committee Republicans to advance former National Security Advisor Mike Waltz’s nomination to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations to move to the consideration of the full Senate.

Waltz’s nomination had otherwise been blocked due to concerns from Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) that had left the committee vote deadlocked as of Wednesday, which would prevent the nomination from moving forward. 

Shaheen said in a statement that she maintains disagreements and concerns with Waltz, alluding to his involvement in the discussion of military plans on the unsecured messaging app Signal, but described him as a more positive voice for continued U.S. global engagement than other figures in the administration and potential alternatives.

“I recognize that Mr. Waltz represents a moderating force with a distinguished record of military service and an extensive background in national security policymaking,” Shaheen said in a statement. “Further, Mike Waltz did not represent himself to me as someone who wants to retreat from the world—and this is a quality I value in nominees.”

“Simply put, in a Situation Room filled with people like Vice President [J.D.] Vance and Under Secretary [of Defense Elbridge] Colby, who want to retreat from the world, and like Secretary [of Defense Pete] Hegseth, I think we’re better off having someone like Mike Waltz present,” Shaheen continued. “That is particularly true when you consider the alternatives to Mr. Waltz as a nominee.”

Vance and Colby are seen as leading isolationist voices in the administration, and Democrats generally view Hegseth as unqualified for his role.

“As Mr. Waltz knows, I intend to hold him accountable through the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s oversight role in the months and years ahead,” Shaheen said.

Shaheen, in her statement, also said she “welcome[s] the Administration’s commitment to distribute $75 million of lifesaving assistance” — funding for Haiti and Nigeria which multiple reports have indicated was effectively a condition of her support for Waltz’s nomination.

Sen. Jim Risch (R-ID), the top Republican on the committee, told Jewish Insider that the aid package was not directly tied to Shaheen’s support for Waltz.

“It’s accurate that we had lengthy discussions [about the aid funding] but there’s no quid-pro-quo,” Risch said. “You have discussions on a lot of issues. When something gets hung up like that, everybody airs issues that they have, and that’s how it got there.”

Asked by JI whether the humanitarian aid was a condition of her vote, Shaheen responded, “I appreciated the negotiations.”

Sens. Jim Risch (R-ID) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), the chair and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, this week urged the Trump administration in a letter to consider expanded sanctions relief for Syria.

Their letter, addressed to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, marked a notable new push from two of Congress’ most senior foreign policy leaders for targeted and conditional sanctions relief for the new Syrian government, an effort that has seen broad bipartisan support in Washington, but which is opposed by the Israeli government.

Risch and Shaheen urged the administration to “remove barriers to expanded engagement with the Syrian interim government,” with an aim of balancing “opportunity and risk” and providing opportunities for U.S. partners to engage in Syria even if the U.S. takes a more cautious approach.

“We recommend a thorough review of existing U.S. regulations on Syria, to include the extension and expansion of existing general licenses and limited or short-term sanctions relief in the near term,” the lawmakers said.

They urged the Cabinet officials to offer sanctions relief for a wide range of critical fields including agriculture, energy and energy infrastructure, finance, telecommunications and education. 

The two said the U.S. should expand general license provisions to allow “more time and geographic flexibility to those on the ground” and consider “short-term sanctions relief” to increase liquidity and prevent instability, goals they believed are  “essential to achieving the conditions to advance U.S. interests.”

Risch and Shaheen said that the U.S. should also work to push the new government to intensify efforts to crack down on terrorism, prevent Iranian and Russian entrenchment, destroy remaining chemical weapons, eliminate narcotics and find missing U.S. citizens.

The senators argued that the administration should reward “irreversible” progress on these issues with “fulsome sanctions relief,” and pursue “deeper economic and diplomatic isolation” if such progress does not materialize.

They warned that some recent reports out of Syria “raise serious concerns” about backsliding on some of these issues. 

Risch and Shaheen further noted the “growing competition between Israel and Türkiye over Syria’s trajectory that may threaten American interests,” urging the administration “to move quickly to mediate between our allies.”