Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Bethel Finance: US earmarks $235 million for Israel missiles

www.bethelfinance.com
Bethel Finance news:
Israel says the U.S. has agreed to provide it with an additional $235 million to finance its rocket system.

"The aid from the American Congress is a supplementary step in the reinforcement of Israeli-American relations in the area of defence," Defence Minister Ehud Barak said in a statement.

The additional funds come on top of the three billion dollars of annual military aid given by the US to Israel. AFP

This unprecedented sum comes at an unexpected time, while the American government is dealing with large budget cuts, including at the Pentagon.

However, Pentagon officials were the ones who requested that Congress approve a $106 million aid budget for Israel's defense systems against missiles, on top of the Iron Dome budget.

Congress chose to nearly double that amount, approving a budget of $235 million for 2012, amounting to $25 million more than in 2011.

This budget, however, is not considered to be part of the American aid to Israel, but rather, goes towards military cooperation between both countries, with each one allocating a similar amount in developing anti-missile systems.

The U.S.' defense assistance to Israel is estimated at over $3 billion for 10 years, beginning in 2007, two-thirds of which end up in the hands of America's military industries.

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