The announcement last week by the United
States of the largest military aid
package in its history – to Israel – was
a win for both sides.
Israeli prime
minister Benjamin Netanyahu could boast
that his lobbying had boosted aid from
$3.1 billion a year to $3.8bn – a 22 per
cent increase – for a decade starting in
2019.
Mr Netanyahu has presented this as a
rebuff to those who accuse him of
jeopardising Israeli security interests
with his government’s repeated affronts
to the White House.
In the past weeks alone, defence
minister Avigdor Lieberman has compared
last year’s nuclear deal between
Washington and Iran with the 1938 Munich
pact, which bolstered Hitler; and Mr
Netanyahu has implied that US opposition
to settlement expansion is the same as
support for the “ethnic cleansing” of
Jews.
American president Barack Obama,
meanwhile, hopes to stifle his own
critics who insinuate that he is
anti-Israel. The deal should serve as a
fillip too for Hillary Clinton, the
Democratic party’s candidate to succeed
Mr Obama in November’s election.
In reality, however, the Obama
administration has quietly punished Mr
Netanyahu for his misbehaviour. Israeli
expectations of a $4.5bn-a-year deal
were whittled down after Mr Netanyahu
stalled negotiations last year as he
sought to recruit Congress to his battle
against the Iran deal.
In fact, Israel already receives
roughly $3.8bn – if Congress’s
assistance on developing missile defence
programmes is factored in. Notably,
Israel has been forced to promise not to
approach Congress for extra funds.
The deal takes into account neither
inflation nor the dollar’s depreciation
against the shekel.
A bigger blow still is the White
House’s demand to phase out a special
exemption that allowed Israel to spend
nearly 40 per cent of aid locally on
weapon and fuel purchases. Israel will
soon have to buy all its armaments from
the US, ending what amounted to a
subsidy to its own arms industry.
Nonetheless, Washington’s renewed
military largesse – in the face of
almost continual insults – inevitably
fuels claims that the Israeli tail is
wagging the US dog. Even The New York
Times has described the aid package as
“too big”.
Since the 1973 war, Israel has
received at least $100bn in military
aid, with more assistance hidden from
view. Back in the 1970s, Washington paid
half of Israel’s military budget. Today
it still foots a fifth of the bill,
despite Israel’s economic success.
But the US expects a return on its
massive investment. As the late Israeli
politician-general Ariel Sharon once
observed, Israel has been a US
“aircraft carrier” in the Middle East,
acting as the regional bully and
carrying out operations that benefit
Washington.
Almost no one blames the US for
Israeli attacks that wiped out Iraq’s
and Syria’s nuclear programmes. A
nuclear-armed Iraq or Syria would have
deterred later US-backed moves at regime
overthrow, as well as countering the
strategic advantage Israel derives from
its own nuclear arsenal.
In addition, Israel’s US-sponsored
military prowess is a triple boon to the
US weapons industry, the country’s most
powerful lobby. Public funds are
siphoned off to let Israel buy goodies
from American arms makers. That, in
turn, serves as a shop window for other
customers and spurs an endless and
lucrative game of catch-up in the rest
of the Middle East.
The first F-35 fighter jets to arrive
in Israel in December – their various
components produced in 46 US states –
will increase the clamour for the
cutting-edge warplane.
Israel is also a “front-line
laboratory”, as former Israeli army
negotiator Eival Gilady admitted at the
weekend, that develops and field-tests
new technology Washington can later use
itself.
The US is planning to buy back the
missile interception system Iron Dome –
which neutralises battlefield threats of
retaliation – it largely paid for.
Israel works closely too with the US in
developing cyberwarfare, such as the
Stuxnet worm that damaged Iran’s
civilian nuclear programme.
But the clearest message from
Israel’s new aid package is one
delivered to the Palestinians:
Washington sees no pressing strategic
interest in ending the occupation. It
stood up to Mr Netanyahu over the Iran
deal but will not risk a damaging clash
over Palestinian statehood.
Some believe that Mr Obama signed the
aid package to win the credibility
necessary to overcome his domestic
Israel lobby and pull a rabbit from the
hat: an initiative, unveiled shortly
before he leaves office, that corners Mr
Netanyahu into making peace.
Hopes have been raised by an expected
meeting at the United Nations in New
York on Wednesday. But their first talks
in 10 months are planned only to
demonstrate unity to confound critics of
the aid deal.
If Mr Obama really wanted to pressure
Mr Netanyahu, he would have used the aid
agreement as leverage. Now Mr Netanyahu
need not fear US financial retaliation,
even as he intensifies effective
annexation of the West Bank.
Mr Netanyahu has drawn the right
lesson from the aid deal – he can act
against the Palestinians with continuing
US impunity.
- See more at: http://www.jonathan-cook.net/2016-09-19/palestinians-lose-in-us-military-aid-deal-with-israel/#sthash.fL4Eq28N.dpuf
U.S. “Military Aid” to Al Qaeda, ISIS-Daesh
Pentagon Uses Illicit Arms Trafficking to
Channel Enormous Shipments of Light Weapons
into Syria
By Prof Michel Chossudovsky
October 04, 2016 "Information
Clearing House"
- "Global
Research"
-
According to Jane’s Defence Weekly, quoting
documents released by the
U.S.
Government’s Federal Business Opportunities
(FBO), the US –as part of its
“counterterrorism campaign”– has provided
Syrian rebels [aka moderate Al Qaeda] with
large amounts of weapons and ammunition.
The US
and its allies (including Turkey and Saudi
Arabia) have relied on the illicit trade in
light weaponry produced in Eastern Europe,
the Balkans, China, etc. for delivery to
rebel groups inside Syria, including ISIS-Daesh
and Al Nusra. In turn, operating out of the
occupied Golan Heights, Israel’s IDF has
provided weapons, ammunition, logistical
support to Al Qaeda rebels operating in
Southern Syria.
While Washington’s Middle East allies
undertake shady transactions in a buoyant
market for light weapons, a significant part
of these illicit weapons shipments is
nonetheless directly commissioned by the US
government.
These
shipments of weapons are not conducted
through internationally approved weapons
transfers. While they are the result of a
Pentagon (or US government) procurement,
they are not recorded as “official” military
aid. They use private traders and shipping
companies within the realm of a thriving
illicit trade in light weapons.
Based on the examination of a
single December 2015 Pentagon sponsored
shipment of more than 990 tons, one can
reasonably conclude that
the amounts of light weapons
in the hands of ”opposition” rebels inside
Syria is substantial and exceedingly large.
Background: U.S. Weapons Supply Routes “Via
Third Countries”
Although the bulk of the weapons and
ammunition supplied to the Syrian rebels
(including the FSA, Al Qaeda affiliated
entities and ISIS-Daesh) are channelled by
Turkey and Saudi Arabia, the US is also
involved in the routine delivery
(originating from third countries) of light
weapons to the rebels including anti-tank
and rocket launchers.
America’s weapons shipments
to Syria’s rebels are commissioned by the
Pentagon (and/or a US government agency)
through several intermediaries via private
weapons trading and shipping companies from
the Black Sea port city of Constanta. None
of these weapons under this de facto
(unofficial) “US military aid” program are
“Made in the USA”. These light
weapons purchased in Eastern Europe and the
Balkans in the illicit market are relatively
inexpensive.
Moreover, Washington’s decision not to send
US made weaponry to the rebels is meant to
uphold the camouflage. No doubt, what
Washington wants is to ensure that US and/or
Western made weapons are not found in the
hands of terrorists. As we recall, the White
House narrative at the outset of the war in
2011 was: “humanitarian aid” to the rebels,
coupled with “some military gear….[but no
weapons]” (BBC, October 10, 2015)
US
military aid to the rebels channeled
(unofficially) through the illicit market,
is routine and ongoing. In December 2015, a
major US sponsored shipment of a
staggering 995 tons of weapons was conducted
in blatant violation of the ceasefire.
According to Jane’s Defence Weekly, the U.S.
“is providing [the weapons] to Syrian
rebel groups as part of a programme that
continues despite the widely respected
ceasefire in that country [in December
2015].”
According to Jane, the shipments of weapons
on behalf of the US are entrusted to private
weapons traders and shipping companies:
“The FBO has released two solicitations
in recent months [early 2015] looking
for shipping companies to transport
explosive material from Eastern Europe
to the Jordanian port of Aqaba on behalf
of the US Navy’s Military Sealift
Command.” (Jane.com April 2016)
The
shipments of weapons purchased and funded by
the US are carefully coordinated, with
deliveries to rebels in the North and South
of Syria respectively. The weapons are
shipped out of the Romanian Black Sea port
of Constanta (December 2015):
1)
First, to the Turkish Eastern Mediterranean
facility of Agalar-Limani near
Tasucu in support of rebels in Northern
Syria, to be smuggled into Syria with the
support of the Turkish authorities. (half
the shipment unloaded)
2) The
remainder of the shipment to the Jordanian
Red Sea port of Aqaba (for
rebels in Southern Syria) via the Suez
canal. From Aqaba, the weapons would be
smuggled into Syria through the Southern
Syria-Jordanian border.
According to Jane, the cargo of light
weaponry included AK-47 rifles, PKM
general-purpose machine guns, DShK heavy
machine guns, RPG-7 rocket launchers, and
9K111M Faktoria anti-tank guided weapon (ATGW)
systems. It is worth noting that a large
share of the RPG rocket launchers were
slated for delivery to Northern Syria (see
table below).
Also of significance, the Black Sea route to
Syria has also been used to ship Ukrainian
weapons to Al Qaeda and ISIS Daesh.
The
following table provides information on the
breakdown of the weapons shipment for
December 2015 documented by Jane Defense
Weekly.
Bear in mind the numbers pertain to a single
shipment in December 2015, expressed in
kilos (kg).
The
amounts are substantial:
The
7.62 x 39 mm refers to ammunition for an
AK47. Namely the shipment of 134 tons of
ammunition.
The
PG 7 VM (2 kg) and PV7 VT (3.3 kg) are
anti-tank grenades (which suggests that more
than 25,000 PG 7VM units were included in
the shipment, and more than 60,000 PG 7VT.)
The total shipment to Aqaba
and Agalar is of the order of
994 tons of “humanitarian” R2P light weapons
for the “Moderates” in Syria. (in a single
shipment out of Romania) among numerous
comparable shipments by sea as well as by
air.
Source
Jane’s Defense Weekly
This trade in light weapons is transacted
through private companies on contract to the
US government’s Federal Business
Opportunities (FBO), a commercial trading
entity acting on behalf of the US Navy MSC:
Stages 1,2 and 3:
1) The
Pentagon (or the relevant government agency)
instructs the US Navy MSC with details and
specifications of the light weapons to be
purchased and shipped to Syria’s “freedom
fighters” via Turkey and Jordan. The ports
of delivery are specified. The final
destination of the weapons is not mentioned.
2) The
Navy’s MSC places the order with the FBO.
3) The
FBO in turn transacts with private companies
for the procurement and shipping of the
weapons and “explosive materials” out of
Constanta, Romania.
PENTAGON —-
US NAVY MSC —- FEDERAL BUSINESS
OPPORTUNITIES (FBO) —- (ILLICIT) PRIVATE
TRADERS IN LIGHT WEAPONS, SHIPPING COMPANIES
—- SMUGGLED INTO SYRIA THROUGH TURKEY AND
JORDAN —- DELIVERED TO ISIS-DAESH, AL QAEDA,
AL NUSRA, “MODERATE REBELS”, FREE SYRIAN
ARMY (FSA), ET AL.
According to Jane’s report:”The FBO has
released two solicitations in recent months
looking for shipping companies to transport
explosive material from Eastern Europe to
the Jordanian port of Aqaba on
behalf of the US Navy’s Military Sealift
Command.” (emphasis added)
Released on 3 November 2015, the first
solicitation sought a contractor to ship
81 containers of cargo that included
explosive material from Constanta in
Romania to Aqaba.
The solicitation was subsequently
updated with a detailed packing list
that showed the cargo had a
total weight of 994 tonnes, a
little under half of which was to be
unloaded at Agalar, a military pier near
the Turkish town of Tasucu, the other
half at Aqaba. (Jane’s op cit)
The
US Navy’s Military Sealift Command’s (MSC)
mission is to “Operate the ships which
sustain our warfighting forces and deliver
specialized maritime services in support of
national security objectives in peace and
war.” (MSC
mission)
Source:
http://www.msc.navy.mil/mission/
Weapons Shipments by America’s Allies in the
Middle East
The
Jane Defence Weekly report pertains to
shipments initiated by the Pentagon through
a third country. It does not address the
broader and much larger flow of military
equipment and weaponry to Al Qaeda and the
Islamic State, commissioned by America’s
allies in the Middle East (e.g Turkey, Saudi
Arabia). These light weapons are also
purchased from third countries ( i.e.
Eastern Europe, Balkans) through private
traders:
[In 2012] representatives of the Free
Syrian Army made contact with weapons
dealers in Eastern
Europe and the Black
Sea region, hoping to procure
weapons that would then be smuggled
across the Turkish-Syrian border. The
Syrian rebels also reached out to [al
Qaeda] militia groups in Libya for
assistance. The Libyan groups have
proven to be a particularly important
source of weapons for the Syrian
insurgents. …
Efforts by Libyan brokers to supply the
rebels have coincided with, and perhaps
been tied to, efforts by Turkey, Qatar,
Saudi Arabia, and Jordan to arm the
rebels. … Global
initiative against Transnational Crimes (2013
Study)
According to Deutsche Welle, exports of
weapons from third countries (eg. Romania)
to Syria are also dispatched by air
via Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Turkey and the
UAE: ”…the munitions, including Kalashnikov
AK-47 assault rifles, machine guns, grenades
as well as anti-tank guns, are
initially off-loaded in Saudi airbases and
ports before smugglers dispatch them to
Syrian militants.” (quoted by Press
TV, August 8, 2016, emphasis added)
“International norms governing the
control of exports of military
technology and equipment are brazenly
flouted, the report said, and a
considerable amount of munitions
exported from Bulgaria to the
aforementioned countries only bear the
sign “unknown consignment.”
Such weapons have previously ended up in
the hands of such terrorist groups as
Daesh, which Saudi Arabia is widely
believed to be supporting.
Earlier reports had already exposed that
arms were purportedly being trucked into
Syria under Turkish military escort, and
transferred to militant leaders at
prearranged rendezvous.” (Press TV,
August 8, 2016)
Concluding Remarks
The United States and its
allies use arms trafficking –i.e. the
unregulated illicit trade in light weapons
through private traders including organized
crime–, to channel large amounts of weapons
and ammunition to the terrorists inside
Syria. These
shady transactions initiated in Washington
are in derogation of international law and
the treaties under UN auspices pertaining to
the trade in small and light weaponry.
Pentagon procurement is directed –through
various intermediaries– towards the illicit
purchase of light weapons: In all
probability, the budgets allocated by the
Pentagon to financing these purchases of
weapons channeled towards Syria are not
accounted for and/or categorized by the US
Department of Defense as bona fide “US
military aid”. Meanwhile the UN has remained
mum on the State sponsorship of the illegal
purchase and smuggling of weapons into
Syria.
|
