This is from the Haaretz, enjoy.
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Bush administration still holding back Clinton aid package
$800 million was to help pay for leaving Lebanon
By Nathan Guttman
WASHINGTON - The U.S. administration has turned down a request by Israel to receive the $800 million in aid that was originally promised by the Clinton administration to former prime minister Ehud Barak.
Since the changing of the guard in Israel and the United States, the government in Jerusalem has been trying to renew the request for the aid, which was originally intended as compensation for Israel for expenses connected to the withdrawal of its forces from Lebanon and to enable it to equip itself with defenses against strategic threats. The Bush administration, however, has not complied with Israel's requests.
Israeli sources said that in the talks with the Bush administration, Israel had tried to find ways to realize the Clinton administration's promises without mentioning the full sum of $800 million.
The most recently reviewed options involved giving Israel $200 million in aid as part of the $10-15 billion dollar increase in total foreign aid that the Bush administration is about to request from Congress. However, a few days ago, the U.S. treasury told the administration that all authorities must cut their aid requests by one-third, and the State Department decided to drop the request for aid for Israel. Most of the remainder of the U.S. foreign aid budget will go toward the economic rehabilitation of Afghanistan.
In recent months, Israel and pro-Israeli lobbyists looked into the possibility of including the additional assistance package as part of the White House's special budget for countries facing terror, or as part of the Defense Department's additional budget for the war on terror. Both of these efforts failed.
Both American and Israeli sources said that the U.S refusal to grant Israel the additional aid package had not been the result of Washington's criticism of the Israeli military operations in the territories, but had stemmed from budgetary difficulties as a result of the enormous increase in the cost of home security in America, as well as the recession in the U.S. markets.
Israeli sources added that as far as Israel was concerned, the aid package had been a presidential commitment that applied to the new administration as well.
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So maybe we should cut the budget on security and military to help the democratic nation of Israel, don't you agree? 😀
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Bush administration still holding back Clinton aid package
$800 million was to help pay for leaving Lebanon
By Nathan Guttman
WASHINGTON - The U.S. administration has turned down a request by Israel to receive the $800 million in aid that was originally promised by the Clinton administration to former prime minister Ehud Barak.
Since the changing of the guard in Israel and the United States, the government in Jerusalem has been trying to renew the request for the aid, which was originally intended as compensation for Israel for expenses connected to the withdrawal of its forces from Lebanon and to enable it to equip itself with defenses against strategic threats. The Bush administration, however, has not complied with Israel's requests.
Israeli sources said that in the talks with the Bush administration, Israel had tried to find ways to realize the Clinton administration's promises without mentioning the full sum of $800 million.
The most recently reviewed options involved giving Israel $200 million in aid as part of the $10-15 billion dollar increase in total foreign aid that the Bush administration is about to request from Congress. However, a few days ago, the U.S. treasury told the administration that all authorities must cut their aid requests by one-third, and the State Department decided to drop the request for aid for Israel. Most of the remainder of the U.S. foreign aid budget will go toward the economic rehabilitation of Afghanistan.
In recent months, Israel and pro-Israeli lobbyists looked into the possibility of including the additional assistance package as part of the White House's special budget for countries facing terror, or as part of the Defense Department's additional budget for the war on terror. Both of these efforts failed.
Both American and Israeli sources said that the U.S refusal to grant Israel the additional aid package had not been the result of Washington's criticism of the Israeli military operations in the territories, but had stemmed from budgetary difficulties as a result of the enormous increase in the cost of home security in America, as well as the recession in the U.S. markets.
Israeli sources added that as far as Israel was concerned, the aid package had been a presidential commitment that applied to the new administration as well.
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So maybe we should cut the budget on security and military to help the democratic nation of Israel, don't you agree? 😀
