Newly-confirmed US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel met with his outgoing Israeli counterpart Ehud Barak in Washington Tuesday, as the two ministers agreed “that the United State-Israeli defence relationship has never been stronger”, confirmed Pentagon Press Secretary George Little. Barak was in town to make an official address to the annual AIPAC (America Israel Public Affairs Committee) conference Sunday, as reports circulate that the Sequester being considered by the US Senate will impact heavily on President Obama’s administration’s commitment to Israel’s security.
In a statement to press however, Little insisted that Hagel had assured the Israeli minister of “his strong commitment to Israel’s security, including maintaining Israel’s qualitative military edge and continued US support for missile and rocket defence systems in spite of fiscal restraints”.
A day previously, Vice President Joe Biden assured delegates at the AIPAC conference of Obama’s continued intention to invest militarily in Israel, as he highlighted the $3.1 billion in assistance the President approved for the Jewish State in 2012 alone, concluding that “under this administration, we’ve held the most regular and largest-ever joint military exercises”. Invoking the allies’ joint success on Israel’s Iron Dome defence system, which was recipient to $275 million investment from the US, in defending Israel’s security during last November’s Gaza escalation, he added that “it was our unique partnership – Israel and the United States – that pioneered this technology and funded it”.
In his own AIPAC address, Barak had sent his best wishes to the newly-confirmed Defence Secretary, as he paid tribute to his predecessor Leon Panetta for his “immeasurable contribution to the strength of Israel”, insisting that “it is thank to the rock solid US-Israel relationship, alongside the devotion of the young men and women of the IDF (Israeli Defence Force), that our capacity to defend ourselves has been guaranteed for years to come”.
In his first meeting with his Israeli counterpart since the long-awaited confirmation of his nomination was approved by Senate last month, after several false starts as his former peers raised myriad objections over his long-standing policies regarding Israel and Iran, Hagel also expressed a desire to visit the Jewish State soon, as Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry prepare to arrive in Jerusalem later this month, in response to which Barak extended his welcome.
The allies also discussed two issues of mutual concern likely to feature heavily in discussions between the US and Israeli administrations in Jerusalem on March 20, as they “pledge to continue US-Israel contingency planning to counter the potential threat” of a chemical weapon-enabled Syria, following which Hagel assured Barak that “Obama is committed yo preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, with all options on the table”. In a further effort to reassure an Israeli administration likely to be suspicious of Hagel’s apparent recent turnaround in policy on Iran, in light of his previous assertions diplomacy was the only viable option, he warned that whilst there was still time for diplomacy to work regarding the Iranian nuclear threat, “the window is closing”.