ISRAEL: TIME'S UP WITH U.S. MILITARY AID!

To the delight of Israel’s enemies and the dismay of its supporters, libertarian Senator Rand Paul, a potential Republican contender for the United States presidency, argued while in Israel this week that the U.S. should phase out all the aid that it provides Israel’s military. And he's got very good point. Israel is already a world leader in military innovation and technology. A totally freed-up Israeli military would only propel its economy to new heights. Israel has a powerhouse economy — the best performing in the developed world — that could easily absorb a $3-billion hit, which amounts to about 1% of its GDP. Israel’s defence spending would actually drop. Why? Because it wouldn't be as reliant on expensive U.S. arms. Under the present terms of its military aid agreement with the U.S., about $2.25-billion of the $3-billion MUST be spent on U.S. arms suppliers, whose merchandise often needs to be retrofitted to meet Israeli needs. But perhaps the biggest gain: The sovereignty of Israel not being forever compromised politically and militarily by the present arrangement. Time to fly solo.

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