Israel is the largest recipient of US foreign aid and apparently wants to keep it's status as long as it can.
Quote:"A delegation of senior Israeli officials that left for Washington over the weekend will ask the American government Monday evening for some $2.2 billion in special aid for the disengagement plan.
The U.S. has already assured Israel in principle that it will provide funding for the military outlays related to the disengagement plan and for developing the Negev and the Galilee, and this week's talks will focus on the details of the aid package, government sources in Jerusalem said Sunday.
About a third of the money would go toward relocating Israel Defense Forces bases from the Gaza Strip to areas within the Green Line, and the rest would go toward developing the Negev and the Galilee. Israel is asking for payments to be spread out over a few years."
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/598680.html
And:
Quote:Israel, which has traditionally been the largest recipient of U.S. assistance, is seeking an additional $2 billion or more to help pay for its planned withdrawal of soldiers and Jewish settlers from the Gaza Strip, Israeli officials said Monday.
An Israeli delegation has already arrived in Washington and will be meeting with members of the National Security Council. The Israelis are looking for a package that would be spread over several years, and would include direct monetary grants as well as loan guarantees, said the official.
For many years, Israel has received the largest sum of U.S. aid. Washington provided $2.3 billion in military aid and more than $500 million in economic assistance last year, according to the U.S. Embassy in Israel.
The new Israeli request is in addition to the regular annual assistance provided by Washington.
Combined U.S. military and economic assistance to Israel has reached $100 billion since Israel's founding in 1948, according to the U.S. Embassy.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/07/11/news/mideast.php
The above figures are in fact misleading for they are not adjusted in terms of purchasing power. Alao they don't take into account indirect aid such as military support from the defense budget, forgiven loans, and special grants which are hard to account for precisely.
Never the less, it is safe to assume that since 1973 the real cost is far higher in terms of purchasing power:
Quote:Israel is the largest recipient of US foreign aid. It is already due to get $2.04 billion in military assistance and $720 million in economic aid in fiscal 2003. It has been getting $3 billion a year for years.
Adjusting the official aid to 2001 dollars in purchasing power, Israel has been given $240 billion since 1973, Stauffer reckons. In addition, the US has given Egypt $117 billion and Jordan $22 billion in foreign aid in return for signing peace treaties with Israel.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/1209/p16s01-wmgn.html
Obviously those figures don't include all the money Israel received since its inception in 1949 as a country.
Should Israel always rely on the US to pull it out of its financial distress? Is America the bottomless Israeli purse? Your thoughts please.
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