Here is a JPost piece on the changing Middle East and the constant that is Israel . It is an important article describing how Israel, thanks to its friends in the US, have been able to entwine its Military Industrial Complex with that of the US and our economy:
• In the 1970s, NSC advisers objected to members of Congress calling Israel an American ally or a strategic asset. Today, only a handful of Israel’s most strident detractors would echo those sentiments.
• With Israel considered a strategic ally, the US helps develop and fund some of its cutting-edge military technology, such as the Arrow missile and the Iron Dome system to shoot down rockets and missiles in the arsenals of Iran, Syria, Hezbollah and Hamas. US foreign aid permits “offshore procurement” of equipment.
I don’t buy the intertwined-military-complex argument given that Israel’s military technology remains behind, especially in aeronautics, despite there being an ‘Israel Aerospace Industries’.
For example, technology from the F117 and the B2 stealth aircraft was not shared with Israel. The stealth technology of the F-22 remains in US hands. Israel received a delivery of three (3) surveillance Gulfstream aircraft from the US in recent years. That indicates that Israel does not have the know-how or the resources to contribute such advanced technology to this alleged partnership.
Instead, what one finds is an Israel that relies on US technology and welfare to maintain its technological edge in the Middle East.
Whatever military technology or weaponry Israel does manufacture it exports to countries like India and China — oftentimes after reverse engineering US technology in violation of its agreements with the US.
So on what does Israel’s military industry pride itself? It prides itself on developing small arms for so-called close-quarters combat. There’s nothing special there. Many countries have the technological capabilities to develop small weapons. In addition, Israel prides itself on developing mini and micro UAVs. But, then again, UAV development didn’t spring out of any special Israeli ingenuity or talent. There was merely a need in Israel to find low cost and basic aerial reconnaissance capabilities.
By contrast, the US, with its resources and know-how developed full scale UAVs like the Predator, the Global Hawk and others.
In short, the US military doesn’t need the Israeli military. If anything, the Israeli military industrial ‘complex’ exists courtesy of the US, no different than the welfare check Israel receives annually.
The Arrow missile project? The US has no immediate need for such a system. The system benefits Israel and Israel benefited from Uncle Sam’s funding of this project.
Avi, on this I beg to differ with you. It’s more than the materiel at stake here. It’s a mind-set. I don’t have time to write a treatise, but I think Jeff Halper got it right in this interview. It’s the insidiousness of Israeli’s security politics, aided and abetted by its defense industry. I’m not making a great argument, but listen to Halper in this interview. If you don’t have time to listen to the whole thing, start around 15 minutes and go to 25 minutes.
link to youtube.com
The US had to utilize an abandoned Russian-built Air Base in Wadi Qena, Egypt for the C-141s that were employed during the Iranian hostage rescue attempt.
The “only constant ally” has never supported the US in a single armed conflict. I believe the only time the US even bothered to ask was during the war in Vietnam. President Johnson was looking for more allied participation. The DoD suggested that Israel should contribute some token medical or peace corps-type teams, but the Israeli’s were not interested.
So, there is only an intertwining with the private defense industry and few of their counterparts in the defense procurement agencies who act as Israel’s buyers. In so far as the major military operating commands are concerned, Israel is pretty much “a waste of life”. Lt. Col Ollie North did employ Shimon Peres in the illegal Iran-Contra arms deal.
It’s worse than that, Hostage. Israel is infected our local police forces with their bullshit.
The only thing “constant” is the metronomic regularity which with the great unwashed masses are forced time and time again to endure the endless iteration of that mendacious, fabulist meme.
the Iron dome doesn’t seem to work around Gaza
“Israel is US’s only constant ally ”
Allies are supposed to provide help and support, especially in times of war.
When has Israel ever helped the US?
israel is no ally of America, in fact it is likely our greatest and most nefarious enemy … israel is our controlling parasite and we need to get it the hell off of us
nice, the old Israel is dumb argument.
“Israel is US’s only constant ally in shifting Middle East” may actually be true.
It may? Then do tell us when Israel has ever helped the US.
Looks to me more like Israel is the US’s only constant and self-inflicted open wound in the shifting Middle East. The death of the USSR ended any use of it as “a cheap aircraft carrier.” A real buddy wouldn’t reverse engineer some small part of the free military-security gifts we give him and sell them as “Israeli-made” weapons to our enemies. If it looked like China or maybe India would benefit Israel more, Israel would drop Uncle Sam like a hot potato without blinking an eye.
right which is why Israel spies on the US more than most of the US’s enemies.