The US Navy is considering adding unmanned Israeli boats to its Middle East operations, a US official said, a move that could deepen Israel’s growing role in regional military arrangements.
Bahrain is home to the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet and several international naval task forces.
Israel is due to become the 29th country to post an attache to the fleet’s Manama headquarters, officials said, adding the as-yet unnamed envoy would likely be of navy captain or commander rank.
“It’s about keeping the lines of communication open” bilaterally between Israel and the fleet, a US official said, referring to the plan to station the envoy in Bahrain.
Israel has not formally confirmed the appointment, according to Reuters.
The US official said the fleet was examining dozens of unmanned vessels as part of current Gulf exercises, and it was interested in Israeli-made surface drones as possible complements to flying and underwater drones.
“The Israelis are definitely vested in leveraging this technology,” the official said, adding that a fleet commander had in recent weeks visited Haifa in Israel to study the surface drones.
Earlier this month Israel and Bahrain also signed a security cooperation agreement.
