The IDF and the US military are increasing their military cooperation, according to a report published in the Wall Street Journal this past weekend.
The newspaper reported that this month, about 200 US Marines joined a battalion of Israeli soldiers for an all-night march through the Negev desert, following three weeks of joint drills. Part of the exercise included a mock attack on a mock Arab village. This included IDF soldiers from another unit posing as Arab guerrillas and explosions triggered by pyrotechnics engineers to simulate a battle between IDF forces and Arabs.
The Hizbullah backed Al Manar TV also reported on the drill, claiming that it was an exercise meant to simulate a battle between Israeli forces and Hizbullah forces, and that the mock terrain resembled Lebanon.
According to US officials, the joint exercise was the biggest US-Israeli joint infantry exercise ever. In a similar exercise last year, only around 20 US Marines participated. Officials added that an even bigger joint exercise will take place in the fall, this time involving tanks and armored vehicles.
The Wall Street Journal added that the intensified partnership between the two countries’ military forces is part of the Obama administration's policy of boosting military support for American allies in the Mideast amid heightened tensions with Iran and its allies such as Hizbullah and Hamas. Obama also believes that such partnerships may also help induce Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to make concessions in peace talks.
Last October, more than 2,000 officers and soldiers from the Israeli and American armies participated in a joint military exercise entitled titled “Juniper Cobra,” which focused on defensive measures against ground-to-ground missiles. Air, land, and sea forces from both the Israeli and United States militaries took part in the exercise.
The US and Israel also cooperate on the sale of arms and aircraft. On Sunday, Defense Minister Ehud Barak announced the formal approval for purchasing the American F-35 Stealth fighter plane, saying that the having the F-35 plane in Israel "will give the Air Force the best capability in the short and long range and allow Israel to maintain aerial superiority.”
Also this year, Obama asked Congress to allocate $205 million to accelerate development of the Iron Dome anti-rocket system. At the same, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee said last week that he is holding up previously authorized military aid to Lebanon, out of concerns that the $100 million in military aid for the Lebanese Armed Forces will be used by Hizbullah terrorist forces. All in all, said the Wall Street Journal, US military aid to Israel reached a high of $2.78 billion in 2010, up from $2.55 billion in 2009, and is slated to jump to $3 billion in 2011.
Officials in Washington explained that the increased cooperation between the two countries is part warning to Iran over its nuclear program, and part assurance to Israel that the US is fully committed to its security.
At the same time, the US is also stepping up military support to countries it has ties with in the region. One example of this is the recent arms package to Saudi Arabia, which will include advanced F-15 fighter jets but not long-range weapons systems and other arms. The terms of the Saudi deal changed after Israeli officials repeatedly conveyed their concerns that the US risks undermining Israel’s military advantage by equipping regional rivals with top-flight technologies. The report in the Wall Street Journal also added that the Obama administration said it intended to provide new Patriot missile batteries to Kuwait.
Visits by the Israeli and American military brass have jumped dramatically, especially this past year. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen has made four visits to Israel since 2007, two of them this year alone. Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak has visited Washington four times so far this year, which is unmatched by any recent Israeli defense minister.
As one Israeli senior army officer was quoted as saying: “There's been a constant stream of American officers coming through. I haven't seen anything like it in my 20 years in the army.”