U.S. wants Israel to suspend radar sale to India
Special to World Tribune.com
MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE
Monday, July 3, 2000
TEL AVIV [MENL] -- Prime Minister Ehud Barak has accelerated efforts with
the United States to resolve their dispute over the sale of Phalcon airborne
early-warning alert system to China as Washington is expected to demand new
restrictions on Israeli arms sales to India.
Barak telephoned U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen over the weekend
to discuss the Phalcon deal. Israeli officials would not disclose details
but said this was regarded as the highest-level contact over the last few
days by Israel to defuse the situation.
Israeli officials said they were stunned by the threats of the U.S.
Congress to withhold aid to Israel until the Jewish state cancels the $250
million Phalcon sale. They said the Barak government must resolve the issue
within the next few weeks.
Defense sources said the uproar over the Phalcon deal has suspended much
of the strategic relationship between Washington and Jerusalem. The Pentagon
has frozen dialogue and other forms of cooperation with Israel amid charges
by U.S. officials that the Phalcon would endanger the U.S. presence in the
Taiwan straits.
The Pentagon freeze includes the cancellation of a joint exercise with
the Israeli air force. The Pentagon did not explain, but U.S. officials said
the U.S. air force refused to deal with Israel out of concern that any
information it obtains from the exercise would be transferred to Beijing.
The Israeli Haaretz daily said the United States has also expressed
objection to another Israeli defense deal. The opposition by the Pentagon is
to the Israeli sale of the Green Pine radar to India. The radar is used in
the Arrow anti-missile defense system to detect incoming enemy missiles. The
radar was developed by Israel Aircraft Industries.
U.S. officials said the Green Pine radar is similar to that of the
Phalcon system and will exacerbate tension with Pakistan. The Indian deal
has been delayed for more than a year because of U.S. opposition.
The Clinton administration has demanded that Israel provide advance
notification of defense sales to 27 so-called countries of concern. They
include China, India and Yugoslavia -- which have extensive defense
relations with Israel.
Monday, July 3, 2000
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