The Trump administration has expedited a push to sell F-35 warplanes to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) following President Donald Trump's announcement of a historic deal between Israel and the UAE on normalizing relations, the New York Times reported. 

At a news conference on Wednesday, Trump said the UAE was interested in buying F-35 fighter jets made by Lockheed Martin Corp, which Israel has used in combat.

"They'd like to buy F-35's, we'll see what happens, it's under review."

U.S. officials told the New York Times that they held a classified meeting with the UAE military and briefed them on the details about the F-35 – running against national security concerns about revealing technical information about the Pentagon's most advanced weapon system to a foreign entity before a sales deal is reached. 

The UAE, which so far has access to the purchase of F-16 fighter jets from the U.S., has long been coveting an F-35 deal. While the American officials said the recent move to accelerate the sales process was not to award the Emiratis for agreeing to normalize relations with Israel, they did acknowledge that the new momentum on the arms sale – after years of stalled requests by the UAE to buy the fighter jet – is linked to the broader diplomatic initiative.

The Times article, published on Wednesday, followed a previous report in Israel's Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper that Washington planned a "giant" sale of F-35 jets and drones to the UAE after the Gulf country moved to normalize ties with Israel last week.

After that report surfaced, the Israeli opposition has been speculating that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to refrain from opposing F-35 sales to the UAE in exchange for last week's diplomatic achievement, an allegation his government has strenuously denied.

On Israel's Channel 13 TV, Israeli Education Minister Yoav Galant accused Netanyahu's political rivals of spreading false allegations that UAE purchase of F-35s, aircraft already in Israel's arsenal, was part of the normalization deal.

The consensus among all parts of Israel's political landscape is that even after it has established diplomatic relations with Gulf Arab nations, it would still keep opposing U.S. arms sales that would blunt what's called Israel's "qualitative military edge" (QME).

The United States guarantees that Israel receives more advanced American weapons than Arab states get, giving it QME over its neighbors.

Eli Cohen, an observer in Netanyahu's security cabinet, said the decision-making forum had held no discussion on any changes to QME policy and that Israel had not agreed to any changes by the United States.

"I know of no change to the position and the policy of the state of Israel," he told public broadcaster Kan. "I am telling you that Israel has not given its consent to coming along and changing the arrangement."

Experts told the Times that with Israel's rejection, it is unlikely that the Trump administration will secure approval from Congress to sell F-35s to the UAE. Concerned lawmakers could try to freeze the sale or kill it once they are notified of an ongoing sales process by the State Department.

In a Wednesday interview with the Jerusalem Post, U.S. ambassador to Israel David Friedman said the U.S. would ensure Israel maintains its regional military edge if F-35 warplanes are ever sold to the Emiratis.

Friedman was quoted as saying that while it was hypothetically possible the UAE would one day receive permission to buy F-35s, their manufacture and procurement "would take many years."

Friedman said that as the UAE seeks more advanced weaponry "the QME process will kick in as it has before," according to the newspaper.

(With input from agencies)