[WCUSP] Phil. Bulletin: U.S., Israel Clash Over Saudi Issue

[KATHARLOW at aol.com]

"Tempers between the two sides flared, prompting Israeli  officials to 
threaten to mobilize AIPAC and causing American officials to bar  Israel's return to 
the Joint Strike Fighter project until further notice. The  deal in question 
being worked out between Washington and Riyadh is estimated at  being worth 
several billion dollars."

What chutzpah!  Without  commenting on the politics involved (since there are 
NO good guys in this  scenario) here are the free-loading Israelis with their 
hands deep into the  American treasury - where, thanks to the Cranston Act, 
they never pay for a  damn thing - telling the arms industry that they can't 
sell to the Saudis  who pay cash. And who do the Israelis threaten to mobilize? 
Their 5th Column in  the US, AIPAC!  The notion of "dual loyalty" is as 
unrealistic as  the  "two state solution." The lobby's primary loyalty is to Israel 
and the Israelis  know it. They've successfully mobilized AIPAC before against 
the wishes of past  administrations and it will be interesting to see how 
this turns  out.



_http://www.thebulletin.us/site/printerFriendly.cfm?brd=2737&dept_id=576361&ne
wsid=18461541_ 
(http://www.thebulletin.us/site/printerFriendly.cfm?brd=2737&dept_id=576361&newsid=18461541) 
 (http://www.theeveningbulletin.com/)    06/12/2007  U.S.,  Israel Clash Over 
Saudi Issue   By:  David Bedein , The Bulletin 
Jerusalem - IDF  Planning Branch Director Maj. Gen. Ido Nehushtan and Amos 
Gilad from the Defense  Ministry returned Sunday from Washington, where they met 
with Pentagon  officials. 
The two IDF officials were dispatched in an attempt to smooth  over 
differences in the wake of an acrimonious dispute between the Israeli and  American 
defense establishments over a large arms deal between the U.S. and  Saudi Arabia.

According to the report, the weapons deal in question  involves, among other 
things, the sale of smart bombs to Riyadh, which made the  Israelis fear for 
the IDF's qualitative advantage over the neighboring Arab  armies.

Tempers between the two sides flared, prompting Israeli officials  to 
threaten to mobilize AIPAC and causing American officials to bar Israel's  return to 
the Joint Strike Fighter project until further notice. 
The deal in  question being worked out between Washington and Riyadh is 
estimated at being  worth several billion dollars.

The Saudis are supposed to pay for the  sophisticated munitions in cash. The 
most worrying item from Israel's standpoint  is that the deal includes 
GPS-guided smart bombs, of a type also possessed by  the Israel Air Force. 

Extensive use of such bombs was made in the Second  Lebanon War, as well as 
in many other cases where the IAF needed  precision-guided munitions. Supplying 
these bombs to Saudi Arabia is described  by the Israeli security 
establishment as "real damage to Israel's qualitative  advantage in the Middle East." 
Israel asserts that the U.S. has a commitment to  preserve this qualitative 
advantage, and therefore Nehushtan and Gilad were  dispatched to Washington in 
order to make this presentation to the Americans. .  . .





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