Both Britain and France periodically withheld arms from the rivals in the Arab–Israeli dispute, primarily when states took action that threatened either British or French regional interests.[1] The three powers recognized, however, that the Arab states and Israel needed to maintain a certain level of armed force for purposes of internal security and legitimate self-defense. They declared that they would consider arms requests in light of those principles, including requests that would permit the countries to "play their part in the defense of the area as a whole." An important but somewhat-unenforceable clause of the Tripartite Agreement also stressed that the three powers would sell arms only with an assurance that the purchasing nations would not use them for acts of aggression against other nations.[2]