Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is going shopping next week when he visits President Barack Obama next week, who will receive a request for a hefty increase in American military aid.
Congressional and government sources said that Israel wants the next 10 year-aid program, starting in 2017, to cover $50 billion in aid, 65 percent more than the current aid, Reuters reported. The United States is likely to whittle down the $5 billion-a-year request to closer to $4 billion.
It previously has been reported that Prime Minister Netanyahu will ask for more aid, and the Obama administration knew very well that will be one of the costs of the nuclear deal with Iran, which the Prime Minister bitterly fought.
Most of the “aid” actually ends up back in the United States because Israel, like other countries that receive assistance for weapons, is required to buy a hefty percentage of equipment and weapons from American contractors and manufacturers.
One of those is Lockheed-Martin, which is selling Israel the F-35 stealth fighter and which the defense establishment says will help it provide a deterrent to Iran, which Israel assumes will be closer to nuclear capability because of the deal.
President Obama insists that the agreement includes procedures that will prevent Iran from becoming nuclear armed. Prime Minister Netanyahu has argued the agreement actually will pave the way for Tehran to get its hands on a nuclear weapon.