Israel tightens arms export controls after US spat
Reuters
Date: 02-27-06
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel is imposing tighter controls on arms exports as part of an accord with the United States, ending a dispute over the sale of advanced Israeli-made weaponry to China, senior security officials said on Monday.
They said an Exports Control Department was being opened in Israel's Defense Ministry which, in consultation with the Foreign Ministry, would monitor and potentially limit the sale of weaponry to countries appearing on U.S. watch-lists.
"We will certainly be taking American views on this-or-that client in guiding our export policies," one official said.
There was no date given for when the new department would begin work.
The moves were part of a fence-mending agreement last year between the Defense Ministry and the Pentagon aimed at defusing U.S. ire at Israel's sale of Harpy attack drones and other advanced technology to China.
Washington, which gives Israel $2 billion in annual defense aid, complained the exports could endanger its ally Taiwan.
Israeli officials previously said Washington had also sought oversight on its lucrative defense exports to India.
Israel denied wrongdoing, and some Israeli security experts accused the United States of trying to curb foreign competition to its arms firms. But the U.S. complaint prompted Israel to apologize and reshuffle top defense officials.
Source
FAIR USE NOTICE
This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.