U.S., Israel To Negotiate Military Aid Extension

[Paul E Ester]

In an extraordinarily emotive visit here aimed at rallying Israel’s current and future leaders to seize the chance for peace, U.S. President Barack Obama doubled down on U.S. security support with a new agreement to extend annual military aid through 2027.

The pending 10-year military aid package would commit Washington to provide up to $40 billion in additional Foreign Military Financing (FMF) grant assistance to Israel, sources here say. It would automatically kick in at the conclusion of the current 10-year, $30 billion agreement signed in 2007 under President George W. Bush and would bind Obama’s successor to continued military aid to Israel.

The current agreement elevated Israel’s annual grant aid from $2.4 billion to $3.1 billion, and Israeli officials expect the follow-on package to provide incremental boosts to nearly $4 billion per year.

At a joint March 20 news conference here with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Obama reiterated Washington’s “solemn obligation” to safeguard Israel’s “non-negotiable” security.

http://www.defensenews.com/article/20130324/DEFREG02/303240005/U-S-Israel-Negotiate-Military-Aid-Extension?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE

[Autumn]

1. Piece of cake. We can get that from cuts

to programs for Americans in need. Plenty to cut there.

[Poll_Blind]

2. You can always COUNT on President Obama!

PB

[L0oniX]

3. Much thanks to our seniors and poor. Hey ...where's all those Atheists & Agnostics? n/t

[Generation_Why]

4. I am strongly in favor of Palestine being a free and independent state...

But I feel that the money we have invested in Israel's missile/rocket defense has been well spent.

It kept the latest conflict (in which I feel Israel acted too harshly) from escalating more than it had would have.

[dipsydoodle]

5. I would think Israel needs that.

Their balance of trade deficit is over a $ billion and about to get worse.

EU consuls recommend imposing sanctions on Israeli settlements http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/eu-consuls-recommend-imposing-sanctions-on-israeli-settlements.premium-1.506043

Give it time and the US may need to fully fund Israel.