Posted 3/24/2003 11:11 AM
The Associated Press
U.S. military employs Israeli technology in Iraq war
The
Bush administration has made clear it wants Israel to stay out of an
Iraq war so as not to provoke Arab and Muslim countries assisting the
United States. But that won't stop Israel's weaponry and arms
technology from being used against Iraqis. After decades of U.S.
military aid and defense cooperation, the U.S. military is permeated by
technology developed in Israel — from the Army's Hunter drones to the
targeting systems on the U.S. Marines' Harrier jets to the fuel tanks
on its F-15 fighters.
"We'll be shooting down some (French)
Mirage 3s, I think, if the Iraqis ever come up. We may shoot them with
an Israeli missile, from a U.S. warplane," said Joel Johnson, spokesman
for the Aerospace Industries Association, a Washington-based industry
lobby.
It would be hard to find a modern military that manages
without technology developed by the Jewish state's feisty industry.
Israel emerged last year as the world's No. 3 arms and military
services exporter — ahead of even Russia's massive arms industry,
according to Jane's Defense Weekly.
That Israel's weaponry has
found a place inside the mighty U.S. military points to the country's
engineering prowess — and its status as a favorite ally, said Yiftah
Shapir of the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel Aviv
University.
The U.S.-Israeli friendship "helps to a certain
extent, but when it comes to commercial competition, these sentiments
are put aside," Shapir said. "These are highly advanced and the price
is highly competitive."
Iraqi forces might be on the receiving end of Israeli technology in several scenarios.
A
B-52 bomber could fire Popeye air-to-surface missiles — dubbed AGM-142
by the U.S. Air Force — at ground targets. The precision-guided Popeyes
were designed by Rafael, a company partially owned by the government of
Israel.
Israeli-designed Hunter unmanned aerial vehicles are in
the service of the U.S. Army, and its cousin, the Pioneer, is being
used by the U.S. Marines to scout Iraqi defenses. Both originated in
the design labs of Israel Aircraft Industries, the country's largest
private company.
The Hunter dropped anti-tank munitions in
recent U.S. tests, and could be used alongside the Air Force's armed
Predator missile-firing drone in a ground attack role.
Some of the
Army's Bradley fighting vehicles are guided by on-board computers
supplied by a subsidiary of Israel's Elbit Systems, Shapir said. U.S.
troops riding in the Bradleys might also be protected by armor from
Rafael, said Lova Drori, Rafael's director of international marketing.
Rafael
is also the designer of the Litening Targeting Pods used to fire
precision weapons from the Marines' AV-8B Harrier jet, as well as F-15s
and F-16s flown by the Air Force Reserves and Army National Guard,
Drori said.
Israel also makes or designs multiple rocket
launchers, mortars, and laser target designators for the Army's
Comanche helicopter and other components, Shapir said.
Much of the
equipment is manufactured in the United States by subsidiaries of
Israeli companies, or through joint ventures with U.S. weapons
manufacturers.
According to Jane's, Israel made more than $3.5
billion in arms sales last year, roughly equal to Russia's massive arms
export industry. Only the United States and Britain sold more, Jane's
reported.
Other sources don't factor in Israel's exports of
services — such as upgrades to tanks and fighter aircraft — and rank
Israel as a smaller exporter. London's International Institute for
Strategic Studies called Israel the world's No. 5 arms exporter last
year.
Besides the United States, Israel's top customers include
Turkey, India, Brazil, Canada and Germany. China used to be a major
client, but Israel backed off after protests from the United States,
Shapir and others said
عدل سابقا من قبل zerguit في الإثنين 07 مارس 2011, 15:09 عدل 1 مرات
The Associated Press
U.S. military employs Israeli technology in Iraq war
The
Bush administration has made clear it wants Israel to stay out of an
Iraq war so as not to provoke Arab and Muslim countries assisting the
United States. But that won't stop Israel's weaponry and arms
technology from being used against Iraqis. After decades of U.S.
military aid and defense cooperation, the U.S. military is permeated by
technology developed in Israel — from the Army's Hunter drones to the
targeting systems on the U.S. Marines' Harrier jets to the fuel tanks
on its F-15 fighters.
"We'll be shooting down some (French)
Mirage 3s, I think, if the Iraqis ever come up. We may shoot them with
an Israeli missile, from a U.S. warplane," said Joel Johnson, spokesman
for the Aerospace Industries Association, a Washington-based industry
lobby.
It would be hard to find a modern military that manages
without technology developed by the Jewish state's feisty industry.
Israel emerged last year as the world's No. 3 arms and military
services exporter — ahead of even Russia's massive arms industry,
according to Jane's Defense Weekly.
That Israel's weaponry has
found a place inside the mighty U.S. military points to the country's
engineering prowess — and its status as a favorite ally, said Yiftah
Shapir of the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel Aviv
University.
The U.S.-Israeli friendship "helps to a certain
extent, but when it comes to commercial competition, these sentiments
are put aside," Shapir said. "These are highly advanced and the price
is highly competitive."
Iraqi forces might be on the receiving end of Israeli technology in several scenarios.
A
B-52 bomber could fire Popeye air-to-surface missiles — dubbed AGM-142
by the U.S. Air Force — at ground targets. The precision-guided Popeyes
were designed by Rafael, a company partially owned by the government of
Israel.
Israeli-designed Hunter unmanned aerial vehicles are in
the service of the U.S. Army, and its cousin, the Pioneer, is being
used by the U.S. Marines to scout Iraqi defenses. Both originated in
the design labs of Israel Aircraft Industries, the country's largest
private company.
The Hunter dropped anti-tank munitions in
recent U.S. tests, and could be used alongside the Air Force's armed
Predator missile-firing drone in a ground attack role.
Some of the
Army's Bradley fighting vehicles are guided by on-board computers
supplied by a subsidiary of Israel's Elbit Systems, Shapir said. U.S.
troops riding in the Bradleys might also be protected by armor from
Rafael, said Lova Drori, Rafael's director of international marketing.
Rafael
is also the designer of the Litening Targeting Pods used to fire
precision weapons from the Marines' AV-8B Harrier jet, as well as F-15s
and F-16s flown by the Air Force Reserves and Army National Guard,
Drori said.
Israel also makes or designs multiple rocket
launchers, mortars, and laser target designators for the Army's
Comanche helicopter and other components, Shapir said.
Much of the
equipment is manufactured in the United States by subsidiaries of
Israeli companies, or through joint ventures with U.S. weapons
manufacturers.
According to Jane's, Israel made more than $3.5
billion in arms sales last year, roughly equal to Russia's massive arms
export industry. Only the United States and Britain sold more, Jane's
reported.
Other sources don't factor in Israel's exports of
services — such as upgrades to tanks and fighter aircraft — and rank
Israel as a smaller exporter. London's International Institute for
Strategic Studies called Israel the world's No. 5 arms exporter last
year.
Besides the United States, Israel's top customers include
Turkey, India, Brazil, Canada and Germany. China used to be a major
client, but Israel backed off after protests from the United States,
Shapir and others said
عدل سابقا من قبل zerguit في الإثنين 07 مارس 2011, 15:09 عدل 1 مرات