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Caroline Yevak

Debate: Continue U.S. Aid to Israel? :: Middle East Quarterly - 0 views

  • Kurz: The United States and Israel—at Israel's initiative—have already developed a plan to gradually eliminate U.S. economic aid to Israel. There is an understanding that Israel's economy is doing better, its debt repayments (the justification for economic aid in the first place) are going down. If Israel had had its debt forgiven, as Egypt did, after the Gulf war, it wouldn't need economic aid at all. But that couldn't happen because of technical budgetary reasons; so instead of forgiving the debt, the United States is essentially giving Israel the money it needs to pay back its American loans. That will end in seven years. On the military side, it's anybody's guess. If the conflict ends tomorrow, if there is a real peace treaty with Syria, if Iran becomes a moderate force in the region, if Iraq no longer is a threat to Israel, if Israel is finally accepted as a permanent, legitimate state in the Middle East, then Israel will not need to spend huge sums of money for her defense and will no longer need U.S. help in doing so.
  • We give aid to Israel to maintain its security in a very tough region and a very important part of the world in order to advance critical U.S. interests. If that aid were reduced to a point that Israel couldn't buy the equipment it needs to defend itself and maintain the peace, that would be dangerous to us.
  • I do, but just as Israel's economy is doing much better, the military threats against her are much greater. Look at what's happening in the region: the nuclear threat, the missile threat, where they are coming from, the distances involved from rogue regimes like Iran and Iraq.
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    Maybe we could free economic aid, but Military aid?? Ehmmmmmrrrrrrr..........neiigqfoil23hnfp23t9gfh32p
Neha Kukreja

U.S. Aid to Israel - 0 views

  • He explored the strategic reasoning behind the aid, asserting that it parallels the "needs of American arms exporters" and the role "Israel could play in advancing U.S. strategic interests in the region."
  • Approximately a third of the entire U.S. foreign aid budget goes to Israel, "even though Israel comprises just...one-thousandth of the world's total population, and already has one of the world's higher per capita incomes."
    • Neha Kukreja
       
      What would happen if they lost this subsidy??
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • "Israel has helped defeat radical nationalist movements" and has been a "testing ground for U.S. made weaponry."
  • this aid is "little more than an American subsidy to U.S. arms manufacturers," considering that the majority of military aid to Israel is used to buy weapons from the U.S.
  • Israel enjoys other privileges. While most countries receiving U.S. military aid funds are expected to use them for U.S. arms, ammunition and training, Israel can spend part of these funds on weapons made by Israeli manufacturers. Also, when it spends its U.S. military aid money on U.S. products, Israel frequently requires the U.S. vendor to buy components or materials from Israeli manufacturers. Thus, though Israeli politicians say that their own manufacturers and exporters are making them progressively less dependent upon U.S. aid, in fact those Israeli manufacturers and exporters are heavily subsidized by U.S. aid.
Ellen Mischinski

End American Aid to Israel?: Yes, It Does Harm :: Middle East Quarterly - 0 views

  • The economy would have collapsed in 1973 due to the balance of payments problem following the Yom Kippur War. Today it is still important to shoulder the economy from external shocks such as the Persian Gulf War and the massive flow of Russian immigrants to Israel in the past few years. If the aid were reduced or eliminated, a sharp reduction in government spending would be required. Sussman adds: "The $1.5 billion in emergency aid allocated to Israel in the mid-1980s was responsible for helping to stabilize the Israeli economy and stifle hyperinflation."6
  • In fact, American defense and aerospace firms reap substantial benefits from U.S. aid to Israel, for it guarantees them a $1.35 billion captive market each year. Out of $1.8 billion in grants, then, Israel receives about $450 million in cash that can be converted into Israeli currency and used either to purchase Israeli-made military products or develop weapons (such as the Arrow anti-missile system). Steven L. Spiegel, a professor at the University of California in Los Angeles, points out that Israel performs invaluable services by testing and developing weapon systems for the United States, improving American-made equipment, and providing crucial intelligence information.11 Moreover, Spiegel argues that Israel's use of American-made arms not only saves the United States money but earns it more: For example, after Israel's much advertised successes with U.S. weaponry in the 1969-70 War of Attrition and the 1982 war in Lebanon, U.S. arms sales worldwide in 1972-82 nearly tripled, from about $6.8 to $19.6 billion in constant 1982 dollars.12 And while of course it does not wish for wars to occur, the United States gains valuable information by seeing its arms perform against those of Israel's enemies, lessons that "cannot be purchased, developed, or simulated."13
Neha Kukreja

Should Israel continue to receive aid from the United States? - Israeli-Palestinian Con... - 1 views

  • ] is a real benefit to the United States and Israel. We give aid to Israel to maintain its security in a very tough region and a very important part of the world in order to advance critical U.S. interests. If that aid were reduced to a point that Israel couldn't buy the equipment it needs to defend itself and maintain the peace, that would be dangerous to us."
  • "As Israel is continually attacked by ongoing Palestinian terrorist assaults, aid to Israel is more important than ever. Foreign aid presents many benefits to Israel’s safety and security and to Middle East stability.
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    Evidently, aid to Israel is a necessity for Israel's security since they're surrounded by so much hostility...
Austin Buben

Hamas: Government or Terrorist Organization? : NPR - 1 views

  • "A democratically elected Hamas is still a terrorist organization."
  • Hamas has targeted and killed many civilians, and Israel's occupation has contributed to a violent political environment.
  • Steven A. Cook, a Middle East expert at the Council on Foreign Relations, started off the evening by acknowledging several facts, which he immediately said were entirely irrelevant. Yes, he said, Hamas was legitimately elected freely and fairly. Yes, Israel has illegally occupied the West Bank and, until recently, Gaza. Yes, Hamas has done much good with its social programs. But, he said, none of that matters. Hamas' central charter calls for the violent overthrow of Israel. Hamas continues to kill innocent civilians. The group must lay down its arms and renounce its violent charter. Until then, Cook said, Hamas can only be labeled a terrorist group.
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  • "A terrorist is a man who murders indiscriminately, distinguishing neither between civilian and innocent and guilty nor soldier and civilian." Terrorism, O'Sullivan argued, is an issue of tactics, not ultimate goals. There can be pro-Nazi and anti-Nazi terrorists, he said; pro-Israel terrorists and anti-Israel ones. In other words, it doesn't matter what we think of Hamas' ultimate goals. All that is important, he argued, is that they employ indiscriminate violence. Until they stop, they should be labeled as terrorists and treated as international pariahs
  • He portrayed a powerful and vicious Israel that has indiscriminately killed many thousands of innocent Palestinians. Cohen argued that Hamas is not a terrorist group, but a nationalist resistance forced to resort to violence because it has so little power compared with Israel.
  • The audience was asked to vote before and after the speakers made their arguments. At the beginning of the evening, 60 percent voted that Hamas is, indeed, still a terrorist organization, 19 percent voted against that proposition and 21 percent didn't know. After the talk, 51 percent were in favor of the motion, 32 percent opposed it and 17 percent were undecided.
    • Austin Buben
       
      This is exactly the webpage that will help us to win.
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    Agreement that hamas is a terrorist organization running a government.
Austin Buben

HAMAS Rockets - 0 views

  • This rocket created a new reality in which nearly one million Israeli residents [about 15 percent of the entire population] were at risk.
  • The IDF has noted that militants commonly hide a Qassam in a commercial truck, drive to a clearing near the Gaza border and launch the rocket. One Hamas website states that this takes only 15 minutes.
  • maximum range of those rockets is up to 40 km.
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • 34-45 km
  • Musheir al-Masri, a Hamas spokesman in the Palestinian Legislative Council, said (Filastin al-'An website, December 24) that the rockets which had been launched were only the first message and threatened to extend the attacks beyond what had been carried out so far. He guaranteed that Israel would "be hit in a way it had never been before," and that he was not afraid of Israel threats. The population of the villages bordering on the Gaza Strip, as well as Sderot and Ashqelon, would not be secure "as long as Palestinians are not secure".
  • There was also a significant increase in the number of Israeli residents exposed to rocket fire.
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    Qassam Rockets theoretical range. Large portion of Israel.
Duncan Flippo

Palestine Monitor Factsheet - US aid to Israel - 0 views

    • Duncan Flippo
       
      I found this. Talks abt military stuff
  • Israeli research and development of weapons systems is often co-financed by the US. Joint military projects have been set up, such as the development of the Arrow Missile System, which has been operational since 2000.
  • In August 2007, a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on military aid was signed between Israel and the US. This MOU guarantees Israel $30 billion in military aid via FMF over the next decade.
Shana Thomas

Obama calls for Israel's return to pre-1967 borders - 2 views

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    Saying we threw Israel under the bus and accusing Obama of "not sticking by our allies"  If we negotiated wrong then Israel wouldn't be our friend anymore and we wouldn't have a place in the middle east; no allies in the middle east
Caroline Yevak

Israel Needs U.S. Support Now More Than Ever : New University - 0 views

  • nd the Israeli government. Currently, in Washington, D.C., President Bush is promising aid to the Palestinians, ai
  • aid that they desperately need, in order for them to be able to establish good, peacekeeping forces that can rein in terrorists and serve as a police force in the region that Israel is trying to move out of.
  • Israel needs America’s help now more than ever.
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • Israel’s economy is one of the better economies, and their military is by far one of the strongest in the world. But with the election of Mahmoud Abbas, and his efforts to control the extremist groups, European and American support has been shifting.
Kevin Gregor

Netanyahu: Israel Cannot Return To 1967 Borders | Fox News - 1 views

  • A peace agreement, he said, must assure Israel's security: "Israel cannot return to the indefensible 1967 borders," he declared, rekindling the dispute with Obama in a possible effort to placate territorial hardliners in his government.
Duncan Flippo

Potential Threats To Israel: Iran - 0 views

    • Duncan Flippo
       
      I found this. It is about Iran's threat to Israel and an ability to injure Israel
    • Duncan Flippo
       
      all my highlights are way down the page.
Katy Field

http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RL33222.pdf - 0 views

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    In order to promote peace & stability, the United States government should freeze all foreign military financing aid to Israel until the Israeli government agrees to remove all settlements from the West Bank and East Jerusalem so as to return to its pre-1967 borders.
Kevin Gregor

Bad Borders, Good Neighbors - NYTimes.com - 0 views

  • the country’s 1967 borders are not militarily defensible. But his use of this argum
  • Israel needs peace with the Palestinians, and that will likely require a return to the 1967 lines with a few adjustments. These borders can be made defensible if they come with a security package consisting of a joint Israeli-Palestinian security force along the West Bank’s border with Jordan, a demilitarized Palestinian state and a three-way Israeli-Jordanian-Palestinian defense treaty. Combined with such a package, the balanced formula President Obama outlined in his May 19 speech can give Israel the security it needs and deserves.
Ellen Mischinski

Israeli PM: 'No going back' to 1967 borders - politics - White House - msnbc.com - 0 views

  • Obama and Netanyahu, meanwhile, appear to have reached an impasse after two and a half years of rocky relations. The Obama White House was angered when Netanyahu refused a U.S. demand to halt building Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
  • The brewing crisis in U.S.-Israeli relations dimmed even further the prospect for resuming peace talks that collapsed late last year when Palestinians walked away in a dispute over Israeli settlement building in the West Bank.
  • The Democratic president has quickly come under fire from Republican critics, who accuse him of betraying Israel, the closest U.S. ally in the region. Pushing Netanyahu could alienate U.S. supporters of Israel as Obama seeks re-election.
Neha Kukreja

Romney vows to increase defense aid to Israel - Israel News, Ynetnews - 1 views

  • Romney warned that “In the hands of the ayatollahs, a nuclear Iran is nothing less than an existential threat to Israel. Iran’s suicidal fanatics could blackmail the world."
Shana Thomas

Israel: The Six Day War - 0 views

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    Israelis won the territory during the 6 days war so technically it is rightfully theirs
Onurcan Tatman

Israel really against new borders - 1 views

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    Prime Minister NETANYAHU talks about his ideals and that he wants to help out the Palestinians and their refugee problems but not on Israel proper and that resolving the refugee issue will never happen on Israeli soil. He also talks about how Palestinians need to really stay on their own land and how he is completely against he 1967 border lines coming back into place.
Mckenzie Hudson

Defensible Borders for a Lasting Peace - 0 views

  • Finally, in the context of a discussion over classic conventional war, there is one further consequence to consider from a full Israeli withdrawal to the 1967 lines: after such a withdrawal the chances of war would actually increase, as Israel's ability to deter war would be eroded. A post-withdrawal Israel would offer a very tempting target, since it would be a narrow country with no strategic depth whose main population centers and strategic infrastructure would be within tactical range of forces deployed along the commanding heights of the West Bank. Whoever believes that war is impossible does not have to take this consideration into account; but all who think that it is possible, even if unlikely right now, must then understand that by returning to the 1967 lines, Israel increases the chances that such a scenario of renewed hostilities may actually materialize.
    • Mckenzie Hudson
       
      Reinforces my point about insecure borders and how they could result in war.
    • Mckenzie Hudson
       
      And by the way i (mckenzie) found this first, ask me before if you want to use this in debate.
Mckenzie Hudson

PA rejects Olmert's offer to withdraw from 93% of West Bank - Haaretz Daily Newspaper |... - 0 views

  • lus all of the Gaza Strip, when the Palestinian Authority regains control over the Gaza Strip, which the militant group Hamas seized from forces loyal to Abbas in June 2006.
    • Mckenzie Hudson
       
      Israel already tried to return almost all the pre 67 land but palestine rejected it as quote not acceptable
    • Mckenzie Hudson
       
      And by the way i (mckenzie) found this first, ask me before if you want to use this in debate.
  • The Israeli proposal is not acceptable," Abbas's spokesman said. "The Palestinian side will only accept a Palestinian state with territorial continu
Mckenzie Hudson

Goodbye, Gaza | The Cornell Daily Sun - 0 views

  • "We can never totally return to the indefensible pre-1967 borders," Olmert insists, referring to Israel's frontiers before the Six-Day War, in which the Jewish state captured the West Bank from Jordan, the Golan Heights from Syria, and the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula from Egypt. "We simply cannot afford to make Israel [9 miles] wide again at its center. We can't allow the Palestinians to be a couple [miles] from [Tel Aviv's] Ben Gurion Airport in the age of shoulder-fire missiles with the capacity to shoot down jumbo jets. But that doesn't mean we must remain in every corner of the West Bank or in Gaza, where fewer than 10,000 Jews, living next to 1.3 million Palestinians, have been protected by twice as many soldiers."
    • Mckenzie Hudson
       
      great point made by previous prime minister of israel Ehud olmert- pre 67 borders would be too insecure/vulnerable
    • Mckenzie Hudson
       
      And by the way i (mckenzie) found this first, ask me before if you want to use this in debate.
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