ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses a case that represents real success for Arab Gulf lobbying, the F-15 and the AWACS from 30 years ago. The pressure exerted by the coalition of American businesses and unions that the Saudis put together resulted in breaking up the opposition. The chapter analyzes the different factors that led to the success of the deal, starting with the strategic considerations that played out in favor of Saudi Arabia, then moving to the gaps in the approach of the opposition, before discussing the well-planned strategy of the Saudis. The core of their strategy relied on garnering domestic support for the deal, whether from unions and the business community or Arab American organizations. The case study handles briefly the 1978 F-15 sale that took place during the time of Carter, with more emphasis on the 1981 sale of Air Warning and Control System (AWACS) that occurred at the time of the Reagan administration.
