RNA - As we all know, in 2016, the US and Israel signed a record-large military aid package, which would see the US providing $38 billion over the next decade. This was not just a technical record, but by far the largest aid package in US military history. Less than a year and a half later, US senators are criticizing that massive deal as “short-sighted” and insufficiently small, with Sens. Lindsey Graham and Chris Coons leading the charge for massive increases, citing Israel’s security situation.
Sen. Coons in particular has cited Israel’s recent attacks on Syria as proof that the occupying regime needs further US funding, with the underlying assumption that this is only going to grow and the US is going to have to bankroll it.
Sen. Graham has also suggested the US should do away with parts of the deal obliging the Israelis to spend US military aid on US-made equipment, and instead opening up the possibility of the US just sending the money to Israeli arms makers.
This was all expected, as the main point of “Israel aid” is to ensure the occupation of Palestine and the US-led regime-charge war on Syria continue apace, the opportunity that Israel wouldn’t be willing to miss in the first place, ensuring the Arab country never sees peace under the guise of attacking terrorist groups – America’s own creation. In the end, it is always assumed that the record Israeli deal would just keep growing anyhow, and given it is only one of myriad sources of US aid to Israel, the growth is unsurprising:
1- Israel benefits from the war and chaos in Syria. According to the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, Syria is defined as an "enemy state". America loves that, because Syria is Iran’s ally – which in turn is America’s number one “enemy state”.
2- Syria openly supports Palestine that, naturally, irritates Tel Aviv. Despite the inability to provide real assistance, the Syrian government favors the Palestinian cause. But, Israel does interfere in the Syrian conflict openly, aiding and abetting various terrorist groups and bombing Syrian army and pro-government targets.
3- Despite criticisms and resolutions by the United Nations, Israel has no intention to give up the Golan Heights, not only because of its strategic location, but because the region provides a significant part of the fresh water. Tel Aviv is motivated to strengthen its position there as some oil and gas resources were discovered this year. The exploration was carried out not only with the Washington arrangement, but with the participation of Afek Oil, the US company. The discovered resources are not only enough to cover all domestic needs, but also to make Israel a hydrocarbons exporter.
4- It is evident that the Syria war is beneficial to Tel Aviv. As Damascus, being too busy fighting foreign-backed terrorists, can’t have any military or political influence on Israel's pursuit of illegitimate geopolitical interests, which includes not only occupation of Palestine, but even Lebanon. Syria can’t prevent the production of hydrocarbons in the Golan Heights. So while Syria being in total chaos, Israel can make more profit – with a helping hand from American oil giants. And that's only one of the reasons why Israel wants chaos in Syria.
5- The United States has always been a strategic partner for Israel, and their foreign policies in the Middle East are always conducted jointly to further the American and Israeli interests. So there is no disagreement with the US when Israeli warplanes invade and attack Syrian targets. Washington has never made any statement condemning the bombing of Syria by Israelis, and other countries.
6- The US supports Israel in diplomatic and military matters not because of the strength of pro-Israel lobbies like the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee, or out of sympathy stemming from the events of World War II, but for practical reasons. The US's alliance with Israel owes to two key factors - intelligence sharing and ideological unity. Israel's intelligence and insights into Middle Eastern affairs benefits the US in all sorts of ways. Israel's Unit 8200 functions similarly to the US National Security Agency, and the two work closely together.
7- Besides having intelligence sharing partnership, the US and Israel see eye to eye on something fundamental to both of them – destabilization of the Middle East through war, terrorism, sectarian violence, and arms race. Like the US, Israel has regular and open military campaigns in the region. Like the US, Israel targets and occupies Muslim lands and hence is not without its enemies. The United Nations has pushed back on Israel's treatment of Palestinians and their support for illegal settlements outside the 1967 borders in contravention of International Law, while everyone knows that even the lands inside the 1967 borders are again the poor, oppressed and defenseless Palestinians' occupied territories. Furthermore, US military aid and weapons have been used by the Israelis against Palestinians in their territory.
So no matter how bad the relationship between the two regimes’ top leaders at times, no matter who gets elected to the White House, no matter how loudly some voters voice their opposition or how charged the underlying ideological debate: The United States has many strategic reasons to keep providing large sums of money for Israel’s military. The new uptick in Senate in giving more money to Israel is not just good for Israel, it’s also in pursuit of the United States' aggressive policies in the Middle-East.
Source: Fars News Agancy
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