Netanyahu Asks Obama For $50b In Military Aid
10/11/2015, 18:50
Ran Dagoni, Washington
Sources close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed Monday at the end of his meeting with US President Barack Obama that Israel has asked for military aid totaling $50 billion over ten years, starting in 2018. The new $5 billion per year figure includes not only the annual defense aid, but also the separate American investment in the development of missile interceptor systems like the Iron Dome and the Arrow.
The report that Israel would request $50 billion was first published last week by "Reuters", without noting the specific components of the aid package. Israeli sources said that the figure was realistic, when considering the costs of developing the missile defense systems. According to the current agreement, through 2017, America provides Israeli military aid worth $3.1 billion annually. The funds for the missile interceptor systems - which is approved separately each year - has reached $750 million. Thus, Israel is asking for a de facto increase of more than $1 billion each year.
Obama and Netanyahu agreed to appoint teams to determine the size of the increase that Israel will receive starting 2018. The American team will arrive in Israel at the beginning of December. It will be headed by National Security Council Senior Director for the Levant, Israel, and Egypt Yael Lempert, who was the former deputy consul in Jerusalem and is fluent in Hebrew.
The Israeli team will arrive in Washington to continue the talks in 2016. The negotiations are expected to continue a number of months.
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http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-netanyahu-asks-obama-for-50-billion-in-military-aid-1001080067
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