Israel has launched formal talks with the United States
for $2.2 billion in aid to facilitate the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and
northern West Bank.
Israeli officials said the U.S. funding would be used, among other
things, for the eviction of about 10,000 Jews from the areas slated for
evacuation. They said Israel's military has sought non-lethal and other
equipment from the United States.
An Israeli government delegation began talks in Washington on Monday
with senior officials from the National Security Council. Officials said
they did not believe an aid agreement would be reached by the time the
withdrawal begins on Aug. 17.
"U.S. officials will now study the presentation and see what additional
questions we may have," a National Security Council spokesman said. "A
number of programs and needs were described and we will, as the president
has said, be working with the government of Israel to understand the
proposal and see how we can assist in making the plans a reality."
[On Tuesday, Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz said the military has
completed preparations for the withdrawal of the Gaza Strip and northern
West Bank. Halutz, appearing in front of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and
Defense Committee, did not elaborate.]
Officials said Israel has asked the Bush administration for $2.2 billion
in special aid. They said the assistance would facilitate the withdrawal
from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank, the establishment of military
bases inside Israel and the development of the southern Negev desert for
Israeli farmers evicted from the Gaza Strip.
"The principal purpose of those discussions here is to talk about
development in the Negev and Galilee regions of Israel," State Department
spokesman Tom Casey said.
Later, the White House issued a statement that praised Prime Minister
Ariel Sharon and his withdrawal plan. The statement did not cite details of
the Israeli request.
On Monday, Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Shimon Peres said some of the
proposed U.S. funding would be employed to evict Jewish residents and remove
their belongings from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank. Peres said
other U.S. funds would be allocated to develop the Galilee and Negev
regions.
"It's $2 billion over four years," Peres said.
Israeli sources said the White House has signaled its intention to
consider a generous aid package for Israel. They said the proposed aid would
be allocated over the next few years.
The proposal calls for the U.S. aid to be presented as a grant rather
than from loan guarantees to Israel, the sources said. In 2003, the
administration approved $9 billion in U.S. loan guarantees in wake of the
war against Iraq.
