The French government is in talks with Saudi Arabia on selling Rafale fighter jets to the kingdom, France's defense minister said on Monday.

Sebastien Lecornu told reporters there were "discussions" between Rafale maker Dassault Aviation and Saudi Arabia about a potential sale but gave no details.

Weekly La Tribune Dimanche reported that Saudi Arabia – whose air force is mostly equipped with American F-15s and Eurofighters built by Britain, Germany, Italy and Spain – had asked Dassault for a cost estimate for 54 Rafales by Nov. 10.

The Rafale, a twin-engine multirole fighter aircraft, is a bestseller for the French arms industry and helped push French weapons exports to a record high last year.

France, the world's third-biggest arms exporting nation after the United States and Russia, sold 80 fighters to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for an estimated 16 billion euros ($17 billion) in 2022.

Indonesia, Greece, India, Qatar and Egypt are also Rafale customers.

France has sold more than half its Rafale production to date abroad. Saudi Arabia already stands as a major buyer of French weapons.