The US government has cleared arms sales worth $36.4 billion to Saudi Arabia and the UAE, but is reviewing arms sales to some other Middle Eastern countries on a "case-by-case basis", a Pentagon official said.

Richard Genaille, Deputy Director of the Pentagon's Defense Security Cooperation Agency, said that 2 of the biggest deals on the table have been cleared to proceed: a $29.4 billion sale of 84 Boeing F-15 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, and a $7 billion sale to the United Arab Emirates of an advanced missile defense system built by Lockheed Martin Corp.

Genaille told the annual Navy League conference that the overall level of foreign military sales could exceed the currently forecast level of $46 billion in fiscal 2011, compared with about $37.9 billion in fiscal 2010.    

He said given the turmoil in the Middle East, the Pentagon has already restricted some possible sales to the region.

Foreign demand for US weapons was expected to continue in the future, and arms sales would likely stabilize between $20 billion and $40 billion, he said.    

Genaille cited demand for C-130J transport planes built by Lockheed, C-17 transport planes built by Boeing, unmanned aerial systems, missile defense capabilities, and intelligence and surveillance equipment.