United States signaled that it is moving towards a new package of military assistance to Israel. Even as relations between US President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remain fraught with tension.
US Vice President Joe Biden, in Jerusalem for a meeting with Netanyahu, yesterday said the Jewish state’s regional military superiority must be preserved with both the quantity and quality of its weaponry.
The two countries are negotiating a new US defense aid pact to replace the 3 billion dollars, a year agreement that expires in 2018. The Israelis are seeking 4.5 billion dollars annually from Washington. The US is targeting a figure of about 3.7 billion dollars.