Managing U.S. Military Technology and Arms Release Policy to Israel
Abstract
Israel has enjoyed a very special relationship with the U.S. and has been supported by vast U.S. military and economic aid since 1972. Through supporting Israel's technological military superiority over its potentially aggressive neighbors, the U.S. has perhaps been too relaxed in enforcing and maintaining oversight into Israel's defense development and export practices. There has been an ongoing concern over Israel's unauthorized retransfer of U.S. origin defense technology and arms to potentially threatening countries as well as the increasing competition Israel poses in the global arms market. A promising option for reducing this unauthorized third party transfer, and therefore maintaining U.S. military superiority in arms, is a more formal program of collaboration with the U.S.-Israeli procurement and export processes. With a diligent program in place, formalized in a defense trade cooperation treaty, all aspects of arms sales, technology transfer and potential third party transfers can be monitored and preventative measures can be put in place prior to any compromises or potentially discrediting incidents. By collaborating with the Israeli Ministry of Defense (MoD), the U.S. can ensure Israel's defensive needs are met while aiding Israel in maintaining their defense industry base. All of this can be accomplished while fostering the spirit of security cooperation and thus maintaining a good diplomatic relationship with Israel.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 01, 2009
- Accession Number
- ADA539666
Entities
People
- Ila L. Hahn
Organizations
- Air Command and Staff College