U.S. SLOW-ROLLING WEAPONS SALE TO ISRAEL, SPARKING QUESTIONS OF POLICY SHIFT

U.S. Slow-rolling Weapons Sale to Israel, Sparking Questions of Policy Shift

While the Biden administration has effectively paused a sale of weapons to Israel, officials dismissed claims this marks a new shift in policy despite U.S.-Israel tensions over a looming Rafah operation

May 07th, 20PM May 07th, 20PM

WASHINGTON – The Biden administration has yet to conclude a sale of Joint Direct Attack Munitions – both the munitions and kits that convert them to smart weapons – and Small Diameter Bombs to Israel, officials familiar with the matter confirmed following reports from various media outlets.

Officials, however, dismissed claims that the slow-roll marks a new shift in policy despite U.S.-Israel tensions over a looming Rafah operation, stating that this is simply one step that is taking longer than usual to be concluded.

The administration first notified Congress of the pending sale in January, as required if any weapon sales rise above specific dollar thresholds. While the State Department typically provides information to the House Foreign Affairs and Senate Foreign Relations Committees before the sale and followed by formal notification, it never followed up with the latter – effectively pausing the sale.

While officials and people familiar with the matter noted the tensions present and the undeniable message it sends, they pointed to previous on-record comments from senior U.S. officials downplaying the apparent slow-roll of the delivery.

"Although we've been supporting them with capability, they've not received everything they've asked for," said General Charles Q. Brown, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, told an event hosted by the Defense Writers Group last month. "Some of that is because they've asked for stuff that we either don't have the capacity to provide or not willing to provide, not right now," Brown added.

When asked about the matter, U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said, "our commitment to Israel security remains ironclad. We don't, as a matter of course, talk about individual shipments one way or the other. But again, nothing's changed about our commitment to Israel's security." Pentagon spokesperson Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder additionally said he was not aware of any changes in U.S. policy regarding conditioning aid to Israel.

2024-05-07T17:59:05Z dg43tfdfdgfd