Israel has sent a formal request to the United States to purchase 25 advanced F-15-EX fighter jets with an eye to boosting its capabilities to strike Iran, the Breaking Defense news site reported.

The Defense Ministry sent an official Letter of Request (LOR) to the US last week, the Thursday report said, citing industry sources. The LOR is the first step in the process that will now see Israel and the US negotiate over the exact number of jets and the price of the Boeing-manufactured warplanes.

The Defense Ministry and the US Embassy in Jerusalem both declined to comment on the report.

According to the report, Israel had made the decision in 2020 to bolster both its fleet of F-35 stealth fighters and its F-15 fleet, but due to recent political instability, only the F-35 decision was carried out. Now, following the election of the new government last month, the decision was taken to move ahead with the F-15 deal.

The military is now looking to add to and upgrade its existing fleet of F-15s, which can carry the kind of heavy weapons Israel would need to penetrate Iran’s nuclear sites, most of which are buried deep underground.

According to Boeing, the F15-EX “carries more weapons than any other fighter in its class, and can launch hypersonic weapons up to 22 feet long and weigh up to 7,000…