More on US blocking arms and technology transfers to Israel
On Monday, I ran a story indicating that the United States has been blocking arms and technology transfers to Israel since September. The story said that it was only an excerpt, and there really is a lot more to it. Apparently it was done as a 'gesture' to 'our friends the Saudis.'Hat Tip: Israpundit
The unofficial suspension of U.S. arms deliveries began in late September, the sources said. They said the suspension halted the airlift of air-to-ground and other munitions conducted during and immediately after the Israeli war with Hizbullah.It's 1938. Are we to play the role of Czechoslovakia? At this rate, Iran won't even need their nukes for us.
"Several weeks after the war, the U.S. supplies stopped," the source said. "There was no real explanation."
The sources said the administration has held up a list of weapons requested by Israel in wake of the Lebanon war. They said the weapons and equipment -- including the Joint Direct Attack Munition, or JDAM -- were meant to replenish munitions and other stocks in preparation for a larger war that would include Syria in mid-2007.
"The administration has not rejected any Israeli request," a U.S. official said. "Instead, the State Department and Defense Department have said that all requests must be examined."
The administration refusal to approve the Israeli requests has also hampered military cooperation between the two countries. In November, the Israel Air Force canceled plans to send delegations to the United States to examine air systems and munitions.
A U.S. official said the White House was deeply disappointed by the Israeli failure to defeat Hizbullah. The official said the war undermined U.S. confidence in Israel's military and government.
"The word in the White House was that Israel lost the war," the official said. "That alone led to a plummet in Israel's stock in the administration, particularly the Pentagon."
The U.S. refusals have also hampered Israeli defense programs. The sources said the State Department has prevented the transfer of data and technology, even from projects that included Israeli participation.
In one case, State prevented Northrop Grumman from providing details of its Skyguard laser weapon, which the company has sought to sell to Israel. The ban led to the suspension of Israeli negotiations to procure Skyguard, designed to intercept short-range rockets and missiles.
The sources said the halt in U.S. weapons exports to Israel was designed to assuage Saudi Arabia. They said Riyad has increasingly linked regional cooperation with Washington to pressure on Israel to halt attacks on Palestinian insurgency strongholds in the Gaza Strip.
"The White House believes that Saudi help is vital for the United States in Iraq," a diplomatic source said. "There's nothing like stopping the weapons flow to Israel to show the Saudis that the United States means business."
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:27 PM
2 Comments:
Sky Guard is a refinement of the Israeli Trophy system.
So the question is: why isn't Israel buying from its own arms industry?
Why weren't these systems already on Israeli tanks last summer?
Socialism spending took priority over military spending.
You're being pushed to change your government guys.
It was clear that Bush was buying time for you at the UN, but the response had to be quick and decisive. If successful, there would have been the usual Israel bad stuff, and the UN would have put loads of money into Lebanon. Same old stuff, but with the Iran/Syrian threat seriously hampered.
It sucks, many of us hate it, but with the UN as useless as it is at actually doing what it was formed to do, then go-arounds must be found.
This hurt Bush and the Republicans politically at home, so now its payback, but I doubt it's officially turning its back.
Post a Comment
<< Home