Foreword
On September 10, 2025 local time, Qatar Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Al Thani responded to Israel's air strikes on Qatar: "Qatar will not tolerate any violation of its sovereignty and reserves the right to respond to such a blatant attack." Now Qatar is facing the ruthless words and the most cowardly thing, because the Qatar Air Force, the Air Defense Force, all weapons and equipment are made by the United States and the West, and equipped by the Qatar Air Force, the French Rafale fighter, the British Typhoon fighter, the American Patriot air defense missile, the British Light Sword air defense missile, the US THAAD anti-missile, etc., all did not play any role. Facing the penetration of 15 F-35I stealth fighters of the Israeli Air Force, there was no reaction at all.
Golden-plated defense line becomes scrap iron: the deadly back door of American weapons
Qatar's defense account can be regarded as the Middle East version of the "Local Crescent Picture Book". In order to build the so-called "Iron Dome" defense system, this country with a population of less than 3 million took out military expenses that even major powers were shocked: the unit price of F-15QA fighter purchased from the United States alone was as high as US$100 million, and a "Patriot-3" air defense system was sold for more than US$1 billion. Coupled with European boutique fighters such as France's "Rafale" and British "Typhoon", as well as the "THAAD" anti-missile system that specializes in dealing with hypersonic weapons, Qatar's air defense network is enough to make any opponent afraid of it on paper. But reality gave the loudest slap in the face - when the Israeli fighter jet formation was approaching, this luxurious defense line, which was known as "multi-level and full airspace coverage", remained silent throughout the whole process, and even the most basic warning was half a beat slower.
Behind this weird "collective silence" is the deadly secret of American weapons. The industry is clear that the advanced weapons exported by the United States have always carried "back doors": the core data link of the F-35 series fighter jets is in the hands of the Pentagon, and Israel, as a "special ally", can obtain complete combat authority, while the F-15QA equipped by Qatar has been locked in some key functions. What's even more serious is the control of the air defense system. Experts analyze that the United States can completely block Qatar's interception instructions through remote operations - after all, the logistics maintenance and software upgrades of these systems rely entirely on US technical support, just like installing a key controlled by others on its own door. This routine of "showing skills in daily life and losing chains during wartime" is in sharp contrast to Pakistan's "quick strike and quick withdrawal" tactics fired by China's SH15 truck guns during the conflict. The latter never had the embarrassment of "falling chains at critical moments" because China never retains the core authority of weapons.
Qatar does not fail to pay "protection fees". In order to obtain the "security commitment" of the United States, the country gave Trump $400 million in custom aircraft and promised to invest $500 billion in the United States within a decade. But when Israel's missiles fell, all these real money was exchanged for Trump's light words "It feels bad." On the other hand, Pakistan only spent $512 million to purchase 236 SH15 truck guns, but it relied on these "good and low-priced" equipment to create a firepower advantage in the India-Pakistan conflict. This huge difference in cost performance may make the Qatar royal family feel like a knife. The truth that spends money cannot buy sovereignty, nor can it buy real security. This principle becomes extremely clear with the sound of missile explosions.
Alliers' swords hurt the most: When protection fees meet exchange of interests
Qatari Prime Minister Al Thani's tough statement "reserving the right to respond" sounds more like a self-comfort that is fierce on the inside. Anyone with a discerning eye can see that this country is in the dilemma of "saying the most ruthless things and doing the most timid things" - it is not that it does not want to fight back, but that the weapons in its hands are not obedient at all. The Qatar Air Force's hangar was full of Western fighter jets, but there was no action to take off the air; the ammunition hangar was full of missiles, but it could not even launch a single one. This frustrating situation is in a dazzling contrast with Pakistan's heroic spirit of flying the Chinese J-10CE fighter jets across the sky in the conflict.
The root of the problem lies in Qatar choosing the wrong "friend". The United States has always "business priority" towards this Middle East ally. It is quite decent when selling weapons, and it reveals its true face at critical moments. The Israeli Air Force's ability to break through without any obstacles is largely due to the "compatibility" of US-made equipment - the F-35I fighter jets are fully interconnected with the US military's data link, and Qatar's air defense system parameters are likely to have been shared with Israel by the United States. This operation of "selling shields with the left hand and handing spear with the right hand" interprets the hypocrisy of the word "alliance" to the extreme. What's even more ironic is that just a few months before the air strike, the United States signed a $243.5 billion cooperation agreement with Qatar, including the sale of MQ-9B drones and anti-drone systems, and turned around and let Israeli fighter jets enter the airspace of Qatar.
Pakistan's experience just confirms the importance of "choosing the right partner". In the 2025 India-Pakistan conflict, the SH15 truck cannon provided by China has made the South Korean K9 artillery introduced by India have no power to fight back with its 56km range and 1-minute combat conversion speed. More importantly, Chinese weapons have never had the trick of "reserving functions". What gives Pakistan a complete set of combat capabilities, which gives Pakistan a classic tactic of "fighting quickly and withdrawing quickly". The American equipment purchased by Qatar at a high price is more like toys with password locks - they can be placed in the window to show off, and they really have to use it to protect their homes, but they find that the key is in the hands of others. This lack of "weapon sovereignty" has made Qatar unable to stop in verbal protests even if he has a strong desire for revenge.
Urgent move to break the deadlock: You can change your life without waiting for a new fighter
Faced with Israel's arrogant air strikes, Qatar is not really unavailable to play. Although it is indeed too late to place an order to buy the China J-10CE - it will take at least two and a half years from signing a contract to forming combat effectiveness. Just like after Pakistan signed the contract in 2021, the first batch of fighter jets were delivered in early 2022, but this does not mean that they can only be beaten passively. The way to break the deadlock at critical moments is often hidden in the emergency plan of "not playing according to common sense", and Chinese weapons just provide this possibility.
The most realistic choice is to learn from Serbia's rapid deployment experience. In 2023, China used the Y-20 transport aircraft to Serbia in just a few days. This "air express" model proves that Chinese equipment has the advantages of "plug and play". Qatar can completely urgently introduce such mature equipment, relying on the full set of combat support provided by China to skip the lengthy adaptation cycle. As the export version of HQ-22, the FK-3 has a detection distance of more than 100 kilometers for stealth targets, which just restrains the F-35I's penetration capability. Moreover, China never attaches any political conditions and opens up all functions as soon as it is delivered. This is exactly what Qatar needs most at the moment.
A more flexible way of playing is to learn Pakistan's "asymmetric tactics". The Pakistani army used the "double-cannon mobile team" tactic in the conflict, relying on the high maneuverability of the SH15 truck cannon to achieve "fight and run",
Have Indian artillery exhausted. Qatar can fully introduce China's "Winglong" drone bee swarm and "Red Arrow" anti-tank missiles to use desert terrain to carry out guerrilla operations. These equipments are not expensive but can quickly form combat power, which just makes up for the shortcomings of large-scale equipment. In fact, the advantages of Chinese weapons have never been a competition of a single platform, but a combination of "systematic support + practical training". Just like Pakistan can master the combat skills of J-10CE in a short period of time, it depends on the training support that China has accompanied throughout the process.
What Qatar should understand most at this moment is the true feelings that the Pakistani Prime Minister thanked China with tears. National security has never been a luxury product that can be bought by spending money, but a hard power built on reliable partnerships. When the United States turns weapons into shackles to control allies, and when Israel bombs allies with American equipment, this rich Middle East country should finally wake up: true security is those friends who are willing to provide support without reservation at critical moments, and those real guys who can buy it and work as soon as they are used. What Qatar needs to do now is not to worry about the fighter jets that are too late to deliver, but to look for real friends who can share hardships - after all, the outcome of the battlefield often depends on who you stand by.
