PREZ POWER: Joe Biden Moves To Lift Nearly Every Restriction On Israel’s Access To U.S. Weapons Stockpile

The White House has submitted a request to eliminate restrictions on all categories of weapons and ammunition that Israel can access from U.S. weapons stockpiles situated in Israel itself, The Intercept reports. This request, included in the White House’s supplementary budget sent to the Senate on October 20, aims to “allow for the transfer of all categories of defense articles.”

This request specifically targets little-known weapons stockpiles in Israel, established by the Pentagon in the 1980s for potential use in regional conflicts. Israel has had limited access to these stockpiles under certain circumstances, and President Joe Biden is seeking to remove these restrictions. John Ramming Chappell, a legal fellow with the Center for Civilians in Conflict, explains, “If enacted, the amendments would create a two-step around restrictions on U.S. weapons transfers to Israel.”

The War Reserve Stockpile Allies-Israel (WRSA-I), created to supply the U.S. in regional wars, is the largest node in a network of foreign U.S. weapons caches. Biden’s proposal seeks to lift significant restrictions on this stockpile, including plans to eliminate limitations on obsolete or surplus weapons, waive an annual spending cap, remove weapon-specific restrictions, and reduce congressional oversight. All changes proposed by the Biden budget plan, except lifting the spending cap, would be permanent.

The proposed alterations in the arms-trade relationship between the U.S. and Israel, already shrouded in secrecy, could have significant implications. Lifting restrictions, such as those requiring weapons to be part of a surplus, might negatively impact U.S. interests by diminishing American preparedness for conflicts in the region. Josh Paul, a former official in the State Department’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, warns that dropping such requirements could strain U.S. military readiness.

The U.S. government is limited to spending $200 million per fiscal year restocking the WRSA-I, but the White House request seeks to waive this limit, allowing continuous replenishment of the stockpile. Josh Paul argues that the request would create a “free-flowing pipeline” for providing defense articles to Israel. Additionally, the condition for Israel to grant concessions in exchange for certain types of arms assistance from the Pentagon would be removed.

The White House request also aims to reduce congressional oversight of U.S. arms transfers to Israel by shortening the advance notice made to Congress before such transfers. While current law requires a 30-day notice, the Biden budget request would allow this to be shortened in “extraordinary” circumstances.

{Matzav.com}