The US still plans to sell Israel $8 billion worth of weapons
4 January 2025 14:15
The administration of President Joe Biden has notified Congress of a planned $8 billion arms sale to Israel, Reuters reports, citing a statement by a US official, "Komersant Ukrainian".
The agency reminds that, as Axios previously reported, the deal requires the approval of the House of Representatives and Senate committees, and it includes ammunition for fighter jets and attack helicopters, as well as artillery shells, small-diameter bombs and warheads. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment.
Axios suggests that this is likely to be the last arms sale to Israel approved by the administration of US President Joe Biden. The outlet notes that the deal comes amid claims by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his supporters that Biden has imposed a tacit “arms embargo” on Israel.
As you know, some Democrats insisted that the administration make arms sales to Israel contingent on how Israel conducts its military operations and how the humanitarian situation in Gaza is resolved, but Biden refused to do so.
According to the sources, the deal is a long-term one. Part of the production and supply of ammunition can be carried out from existing US stockpiles, but most of it will take one or more years to deliver.
Reuters also reminds that protesters have been demanding an arms embargo on Israel for months, but US policy has remained largely unchanged. In August, the United States approved the sale of $20 billion worth of fighter jets and other military equipment to Israel.
