I am curious to know just how much financial support Israel receives from the US and if they receive income and or military support from other countries and how much. ?
They receive a little over $3 billion from the U.S. in economic and military aid. The exact amounts can be found in the Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. You can find it all at http://thomas.loc.gov
It's a bit less then 3 billion. 1.8 for military aid that is invested in full back in the purchase of americen hardware, and 1 Billion is civilian aid. Israel can do well without this help, other areas of support from the US are much more strategic.
ethan, Ha, ha!!! Israel' economy is on the verge of collapse. It's now asking the US for an additional $4 billion and $10 billion in loan guaranties. If the US stops financially supporting Israel today, Israel would be gone within a few years. Tom
Pro Which would make Pro real happy. The thought of an actual secular democray in the region really upsets him. What upsets him even more is that America is preventing the Arab people from exterminating the Jews in much the same fashion as the europeans of 50 years ago.
verg of collapse? because it asks aid from the USA? what does that prove? - The two years attrition war and the world economy downturn had affected Israeli economy - Israel GDP per capita and inflation rate are on European standards - Standards of living is Israel is still higher many times more in Israel than any country in the middle east - Israels army budget is around $10 Billion .Israel poulation 6 Million. British Army budget $35 billion and is about the same size as the Israeli army. British poulation 60 Million get it? - the US is paying the about same amount of aid to Jordan and Egypt and whta do they get in return? in both countries the US is much hated. How many sept. 11 attackrs came from Egypt? The US is getting much more in return from Israel. See the arrow missle system , almost pure Israeli technolgy and much much more that you know nothing about . As for the Palestiniens , why should they get anything? so Arafat can put it in his Swisse acounts or so he go and buy more weapons of terror from Iran, like the on captured in Karin A?
Brad, A secular democracy!!! Ha, ha!!! First, Israel is not a secular state, it's a Jewish state. It gives precedence to Jews in all legal aspects from citizenship, to land ownership, to voting. Second, as for being "democratic", tell that to the Palestinians who are told by the Israeli government that they live in Israel, but they aren't allowed to vote in Israeli elections. Out of all the so-called "democratic" countries in the world, Israel has the highest rate of disenfranchisement. Tom
ethan, Don't kill the messenger. I'm just stating what I heard on CNN a few days ago. If the Palestinians had weapons, they wouldn't have to attack innocent civilians anymore. They could then fight the Israeli army directly. Wouldn't that be better for everyone??? Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Tom
Whoopie. The founding nation of Democracy, Greece, only allowed greek citizens to vote. It was the same way in Rome. It was the same way in the Ottoman empire. It IS the same way in America, where you must be an American to vote. Saying the Palestineans have the right to vote in Israel is like saying that the millions of illigal immigrants from Mexico should have the right to vote in the US.
The PLO had such weapons once, and they did try to take on the IDF in Lebanon... or don't you remember the 80's? The IDF handed the PLO their heads and disarmed their army. So let me get it straight... the PLO looses against Israel and then should be re-armed? What if after World War I, we gave weapons to Germany after the Armistance?
..fair enough. This year the economy of Israel had seen the worset since 1953. But when you test economy you have to look at multiplie factors and look at the general trend over time. Let's remember that the size of israel population is the size of medium size city in the US. That is the whole story. However this had been said, we have to remember also that Israel had a huge growth during the 90'. Did you know that Intel and Microsoft have only one R&D developmant centers outside th US and that is in Israel? (Intel have another one in Irland) . Anyawy This two years were bad and this is election year, war on Iraq is coming so why not go to the Americans for some help. It's an easy way out and I don't like it but this is how politicians work. But this is not a question of life and death to Israel, other areas of coporation are, as I said before. Also, Israel asked these loan gurantess after the gulf war, got the money in loans and never used half of it. It is still lying there in reserve. go figure. . Look we can argue about interpatations of facts, but let's try to be true to the facts. Israel is a democarcy by all standards. Israeli Arabs be it muslims or christians can vote! they also have around 10 sits in Israeli Parlament (out of 120) . Yes Israel is a jewish state but also democratic one and there are problems with that definition. Now if you refer to palstinines, they are not Israeli citizens, as far as I know nor they would like to be, they are fighting for thier own statehood, once they will have it alongside Israel then they will vote to the Palastinin institutions.
Xevious, If you are born in the US, you are a US citizen. If you are born in the occupied territories (what Israel considers part of Israel) than you are not an Israeli citizen. Tell me, if Palestinians aren't Israeli citizens, then what nation are they citizens of?? One more thing, illegal immigrants were not born in the US, so your argument is very weak. Tom
ethan, You can't have it both ways. Either: a) Palestine is part of Israel or b) Palestine is not part of Israel. If Palestine IS part of Israel, then Palestinians must have the same rights as any other Israeli citizen. If Palestine IS NOT part of Israel, than Israel should get the f#@$ out of Palestine. You can't claim that Palestine is Israel, and then refuse to give fundamental rights to the people living in Palestine. That is not only hypocritical, but unjust as well. So you see, even if Palestine is part of Israel, Palestinians are still under occupation because the government and army that is controlling their lives, is not theirs. Tom
If one was to read the treaty which founded Israel, you would know that there is supposed to be a Palestinean and a Jewish state. The problem is that this Palestinean state was never organized... this is because Jordan, Syria, and Egypt all attacked Israel immidietly after Israel was founded. When the dust cleared, the frontlines were between Jordan, Egypt, Syria, and Israel. You can thank Jordan's repeated wars with Israel for a lack of a Palestinean state, and the current demilitarized zone. I think you would find too if you bothered to read a history book, that before Israel was founded, Jews were buying up land in that area in droves from the Leboneise land owners who could not get anything in that area to grow.
Perhaps too, you are unaware that in 1998, Israel offered Arafat and the PLO 98% of all their demanded terretorial concessions including the founding of a Palestinean state and economic aid for establishing itself. The PLO declined this offer. Compromise is not something the PLO is interested in... it wants 100% of its demands met or it will continue to attack Israel. Such is the earmark of terrorists, and the PLO should be treated accordingly.
What's wrong with 100%? It isn't asking for Israel to turn itself into an Arab state, it just wants a lot of land back, which is still less than what was awarded to it in 1947 (if this was given back AND Palestinians were given the right of return to Israel/Palestine [depending where their homeland is] as well as the right to vote in which of the two nations they lived in, Israel would be politically devastated and Jews would become a minority in a very small state of Israel with an "isthmus" in the south-central area, so this is why the PLO only seeks back the "occupied territories" and not all the land that was supposed to be given to them by the UN declaration. And the earmark of terrorists? I seem to remember that the former leader of the IRA accepted the offer of all but 3 Irish counties, but because of that offer that didn't include all of Eire, the conflict continues in an even more heated manner than before (because it goes on in a smaller area) Would you want this to happen in the Middle East too? Give them 98% of what they want, yes, good idea, that'll stop the conflict.
Mark, perhaps you can clear this up for me. In 2000 the PLO had one demand I remember being clearly one of the reasons Arafat walked out. They wished to have all the relatives of all the past refugees and such allowed as citizens into Israel. Is the PLO still requesting this? I ask because this would actually make Jews a full-out minority in Israel and would obviously lead to a Palestinian government.
Xevious, Let's, for a moment, forget about Arafat, the PLO, Sharon, etc., and let's only focus on the rights of the individual. For 36 years, the Palestinians in the occupied territories have not been able to vote for the government that is attempting to control them. To the Palestinians, the Israeli government is just as legit as the Iraqi government is to the Iraqi people. The Israeli government has no authority in the occupied areas, not because the land does not belong to Israel, but because the Palestinians have not voted to give the Israeli government authority. You see, a government only has the authority that the people transfer to it in the process of voting. You, for example, live in Texas. What would happen if the US Government denied the right of all Texans to vote in the federal elections? If that happened, the US Government would be stripped of it's authority to enter or do anything in Texas. The US military, if it refused to leave Texas, would become an illegitimate occupational force. This applies to Palestine as well. As long as the Palestinians are not allowed to vote in the Israeli elections, the Israeli government and military have no authority to act in or enter into Palestine. And regardless of how bad Arafat, the PLO, or Palestinian terrorist orginazations are, there is no excuse for denying the Palestinians to vote for the government (Israeli) that is attempting to control their lives. Tom
