Story highlights Lawmakers argue Jordan and the UAE can use Reaper drones to help fight ISIS

The Obama administration rebuffed the sale of armed drones beyond close US allies

Washington (CNN) A bipartisan group of nearly two dozen House members is urging President Donald Trump to OK sales of high-tech armed drones to Jordan and the United Arab Emirates after the Obama administration nixed the move.

In a letter obtained by CNN, the lawmakers argued that the two Arab countries are allies in the ISIS fight, and also made an economic pitch to Trump: Jordan and the UAE are turning to China instead to buy armed drones.

The purchase of the drones from San Diego-based defense contractor General Atomics would provide $1 billion for the US economy and "preserve thousands of US manufacturing jobs," the lawmakers wrote in the letter to Trump, which was led by California Republican Rep. Duncan Hunter.

The Obama administration opposed the sale of the MQ-9 Reaper, an upgraded version of the iconic US Predator drone, to Jordan, UAE and other Middle Eastern allies. The administration argued the technology should not be shared beyond close allies under the terms of the Missile Technology Control Regime, a 30-year-old agreement that aims to limit the spread of missile technologies as well as drones.

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