“The agreement will help solidify and chart a course for the US-Israeli defense relationship in the 21st century as we face a range of common challenges from Iran’s destabilizing activities to the threats from ISIS and radical jihadism, and efforts to delegitimize Israel on the world stage”, she said. But to get this deal, Israel had to accept some pretty strict caveats.
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U.S. administration officials hinted that Israel would get a significantly improved memorandum of understanding (MOU) if Mr Netanyahu agreed to drop or even tone down his opposition to the nuclear deal, but the Israeli leader continued to criticise the deal even after it was signed.
The historic MOU is unusual in many respects.
The new deal will succeed the current $30 billion (over Rs 2.03 lakh crore) deal signed in 2007, which expires at the end of fiscal year 2018.
The new US-Israel deal also includes, for the first time, funding for missile defence programmes.
“Strategic cooperation between the U.S. and Israel has always been a critical component of the U.S. -Israel relationship built solidly on shared interests and values”, said Harris.
Ilan Goldenberg, director of the Middle East Security Program at the Center for a New American Security, said the deal will allow Israel to plan for expensive new weapons that will provide new capabilities, such as the V-22 Osprey, a tilt-rotor aircraft that can deliver commandos and equipment to battlefields faster and much further away than helicopters.
“My guess is he’s not feeling particularly comfortable with [Donald] Trump at this point, whether or not he feels comfortable with [Hillary] Clinton”.
Danon also thanked the US Ambassador to the global body, Samantha Power for “her role in further strengthening the close ties between our countries and our peoples”.
“That’s going to give both of them a potential win-win situation”, she says.
Obama said he would press for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, noting “the deeply troubling trends on the ground that undermine this goal”.
The prime minister thanked President Barack Obama, an ally with whom he had skirmish relations over the past years over the nuclear deal with Iran. Obama’s support of the Iranian negotiations, has drawn harsh criticism from many Israeli officials as well as US Republicans.
The US State Department condemned the statement as “inappropriate and unhelpful”.
Ban said on Thursday that Netanyahu’s statement, which appeared in a video released last Friday, was “unacceptable and outrageous”, and condemned Israel’s settlements in the West Bank as violations of United Nations law.
“You know the White House pressured them into writing that letter”, Senator Graham told The Washington Post.
The US also reportedly wanted to remove a clause in the memorandum that allows Israel to spend $400 million a year on “military fuels”.
Caveats aside, $38 billion is still a huge windfall for Israel, especially given the ongoing tension between Obama and Netanyahu during.
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There has been strong speculation that Obama might lay down terms of a peaceful resolution between Israel and Palestine with the involvement of United Nations Security Council after the USA presidential elections in NOvember 2016. The White House insists that the relationship is unbreakable and at the core of USA regional strategy. This clause has been a bone of contention between the nations, however, the USA managed to have its way after nine months of negotiation.
