U.S. seeks to buy into Israeli missile programs
The U.S. Congress is pushing for U.S. participation in developing Israel's Iron Dome counter-missile system, which would make the Americans partners to some degree in all the systems constituting the Jewish state's unique missile defense shield. The U.S. House of Representatives this month tripled President Barack Obama's request for boosting U.S. funding of Israeli missile defense systems from $96 million to $284 million. This followed earlier increases in U.S. support for the Israeli missile programs. U.S. financial backing for the missile defense systems began in the 1980s with the high-altitude Arrow program for which the Americans have paid the lion's share of the $1 billion development costs. All this is separate from the $3 billion in military aid Israel receives from the United States every year. The House Armed Services Committee approved the $284 million funding hike June 6. That includes an additional $15 million in funding for the Iron Dome system developed by Israel's Rafael Advanced Defense Systems of Haifa.
