Does Israel gain or lose from the US aid?
American aid to Israel to the tune of billion a year has been mentioned hundreds of times by Arabs as a "true reason" of the Israeli military victories over Arabs and also, as a reason of the Israel economic success. This aid is very important in the time of the active war actions, but in the time of peace Israel actually loses more than it receives.
The conditions for the military assistance are designed to help the American military-industrial complex at the expense of the Israeli defense industry. One condition of the American aid to Israel is that three-quarters of the grant be spent in the United States. The ‘buy US’ requirement causes Israel to buy defense products at a high price, sometimes even products Israel may not need, like, American light firearms which are worse than the Israeli – produced ones. The direct loss to the Israeli defense industry in the result of the requirement to buy the US military equipment at the higher prices is calculated at 0-750 million per year.
The use of American materials instead of those from Israel also hurts competitiveness in Israel and on the world market and is often used by the US to pressure Israel to cancel the military export contracts which would give it hundreds of millions of dollars in profit, like it was with the "Falcon" contract with India.
America pushes all the Middle East countries into the arms race. For example, America gives to Egypt 2,6 billion dollars a year in military aid( Arabs do not like to talk about this, but it´s a fact ). But the home prices in Egypt are much lower than in Israel, and to retain a qualitative edge over Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan (who also receive the massive US aid), Israel must spend between .60 and .10 on every dollar spent by Egypt. It makes Israel buy US weapons on much more than billion US grant.
The truth is that Israel would be much better off without the US aid than with it.
Edit.
michardav.
"Are you inlcuding all the military freebies Israel receives?"
No, because it does not receive any. Even on the peak of the "freeze" show, Obama denied to Israel any reduction in price for F-35 – but it gave this reduction to Saudis for the same F-35.
" The loan guarantees?"
Loan guaranty for a country with the loan rating so high as the loan rating of Israel is an asset for the country which gives this guaranty. The loan rating of Israel has been raised by the S&P three times in three last years. It´s a success no other developed country can boast of. Enlist for the Basic Economy Course again; looks the first time you dragged through it with more pain than glory.
"Or the 10 billion received to help shore up the economy during the recession?"
I beg your pardon, you mean Israel gave to the US 10 billion dollars? I ask because the economy of Israel weathers the crisis a lot better than the economy of the USA, and the 10 billion dollars the USA gave to Israel exist
Ezekelija, Edit:
“Mr. Moore, you are aware of the gratis F35′s are you not?”
I am not aware. And nobody is, because the US offered F35 to Israel for 7 mln per each plane. (http://www.upi.com/Business_News/Security-Industry/2010/09/21/Israel-seals-deal-for-20-Lockheed-F-35s/UPI-70311285091129/ ) . The Israeli air force wanted 75 F-35s but had to trim the initial purchase because of the high price US asked for them.
“I believe this offer was not made to the Arabs”.
You are absolutely right, THIS offer was not made to the Arabs. They got a better one. Saudi Arabia got 84 F16 for mln per plane.
You know, you with your pretensions on being “an expert” look quite pathetic.
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