LOC14:01
11:01 GMT
GAZA, July 9 (KUNA) -- Israel voiced surprise Saturday at a new US-Egyptian
sales agreement, involving Abrams tanks.
Despite the recent revolution in Egypt and continued anti-government
demonstrations there on Friday, the United States signaled this week that it
plans to continue business as usual when it comes to arms sales to the
Egyptian Military, the Jerusalem Post reported on Saturday.
If approved, the deal would increase the number of Abrams tanks in Egypt
from around 1,000 to 1,130, it said.
The news of the deal raised some eyebrows in Israel which has carefully
watched arms sales to Egypt ever since Cairo began to receive foreign military
aid from the United States to the tune of about USD 1.3 billion annually
following the peace treaty the two countries signed in 1979.
Israel has in the past lobbied Congress against specific arms deals to
Egypt. In the past few years, Egypt has purchased 24 new F-16 fighter jets,
new Hellfire missiles, new Harpoon anti-ship missiles, new TOW anti-tank
missiles, new Chinook transport helicopters and new Apache attack helicopters,
the paper said.
Israel is concerned of the possibility that Egypt will take a radical shift
in elections expected to be held by the end of the year and could potentially
once again turn into a hostile state to Israel, depending possibly on the
identity of the new president and the amount of seats the Muslim Brotherhood
win in parliament.
The Israeli army has for the time being taken a cautious approach to the
developments in Egypt with Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Benny Gantz
choosing a long-term plan formulated by the Planning Directorate, under which
the military would grow over a number of years and not launch an immediate
procurement plan to counter the possible threat evolving in the South.
Gantz's thinking is based on the assumption that a war with Egypt will not
happen any time soon, and that an immediate new procurement plan announced by
the army could actually have the opposite effect, be detrimental and increase
tension between the two countries. (end)
mzt.mt
KUNA 091401 Jul 11NNNN