ABU DHABI — For years, the threat of Iran dominated talks between the US and its allies in the Middle East, but bilateral talks at the region's largest arms show are expected to be dominated by the Islamic State threat and extremist groups, a senior defense official said Sunday.

The emergence of these threats over the past year has shifted defense spending priorities, fueling an interest in unmanned aerial systems to conduct surveillance, hit targets and guard borders, said Frank Kendall, the Pentagon's chief weapons buyer. It has also renewed interest in mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles to protect against roadside bombs. State threat and extremist groups, a senior US defense official said Sunday.

"There's probably some shift, but it's an increase in areas that were not as on the forefront before," Frank Kendall, the Pentagon's chief weapons buyer, told reporters at the start of the biannual IDEX show here.

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The visit comes a week after the US announced plans to loosen restrictions on armed drone exports. Kendall expected the news to be welcomed in the Middle East, and in France and Italy, which has had a long-term ambition to arm its UAVs. France has previously said it was not interested in arming its recently acquired Reapers.

Under the new policy, the US plans to require specific assurances for countries that would use the drones and evaluate requests individually. Kendall said he saw drones as primarily an ISR tool, with some use for striking targets.

Beth McCormick, director of the Defense Technology Security Administration, said the US remains sensitive to the international Missile Technology Control Regime, "and that is why, when we work with countries, we will be talking with them about the appropriate use for the equipment."

In talks here, Kendall and a delegation of US officials plan to discuss the priorities of new US Defense secretary Ash Carter, ahead of a planned visit from Carter to the region. Kendall noted ongoing negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program, the fight with the Islamic State group and continuing activities in Afghanistan — and budget uncertainties at home.

"We're confronting budget uncertainties in the United States and for our defense industrial base, foreign sales are a very important part of their activities these days, and foreign sources of technology are important," Kendall said.

He and Puneet Talwar, assistant secretary of state for political-military affairs, planned to visit Saudi Arabia next week to meet with the country's new defense minister to discuss his priorities, the economic impact of falling oil prices and, "listen to their concerns about the region," Kendall said.

As US allies in the region wage war against the Islamic State group, Kendall foresees rising demand for ordnance, specifically precision munitions. "In some cases, some of our partners are looking for at least replenishment or accelerated deliveries, along those lines," he said.

The F-35 is still off the table for US allies in the Middle East, which Kendall called, "a very sensitive sale to bring about for a lot of reasons." The US's fourth generation fighters, he said, would be adequate for the region's threats. Kendall, unconcerned potential customers would turn to Dassault's Rafale or the Eurofighter Typhoon, said the F-15, F-16 and F/A-18 are "very competitive."

"I understand the enthusiasm for the F-35, but I don't see transactions in the near term," he said.

At the massive show, the US is not only selling its own wares, but exploring foreign products. Among them, the Marine Corps' is searching for an off-the-shelf amphibious vehicle is looking at home and abroad.

On the domestic side, Kendall repeated warnings that sequestration budget cuts would jeopardize US technological superiority. To help the US defense industry offset domestic cuts with foreign sales, he said, the US delegation's presence is important.

"It's certainly creates the perception of strong US support," he said.

Asked about recent mergers in the US defense sector, Kendall said top-tier mergers would be undesirable and generally favored the mid-tier merger of Orbital and ATK. More such mergers would be in the offing, but for budget uncertainty, he said.

"I think that will continue for a while until sequestration's resolved," he said. "It makes it very hard to value a company, when you don't know what it's future looks like with some degree of confidence."

Email: jgould@defensenews.com

Joe Gould was the senior Pentagon reporter for Defense News, covering the intersection of national security policy, politics and the defense industry. He had previously served as Congress reporter.

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