Congressional Arms Control is Freeze for Arabs and Increase for Israel

By Dennis J. Wamsted

The congressional double standard on Mideast issues resurfaced full-force this spring, as senators and representatives introduced proposals either to ban outright or delay indefinitely all arms sales to countries in the Middle East—except for Israel.

For example, Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA), introduced legislation to ban US sales to the region unless the administration negotiated an agreement with supplier nations—including China, France, Great Britain and the Soviet Union—to restrict regional sales within two months. A similar provision was subsequently added to the foreign aid authorization measure, H.R. 2508, approved by the House Foreign Affairs Committee in early June. Berman, a staunch supporter of Israel, sits on the Foreign Affairs Committee.

However, while the committee was approving this moratorium measure, panel member Rep. Mel Levine (D-CA), another outspoken supporter of Israel, was badgering the Defense Department for not transferring some $700 million in weaponry to Israel from the Pentagon's excess inventory. Levine also blasted the department during an early May hearing for not beginning to stockpile $300 million in DOD equipment in Israel for use in future emergencies, as Congress had authorized in the fiscal 1991 foreign aid appropriations bill. Unless the administration began moving promptly on these provisions, Levine reportedly told Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Jock Covey, he would add language to subsequent legislation to make transfers mandatory.

DOD Compliance

Less than a month later, Defense Secretary Richard Cheney announced Israel w d soon receive 10 used F- 15 jet fighters from the US inventory in Europe, In addition, Cheney said the US would continue funding the development of the Arrow antimissile system. The fighters, built in the 1970s and subsequently upgraded, are worth roughly $65 million, according to DOD. US funding for the Arrow, which has already topped $126 million, will total approximately $210 million over the next four years.

At roughly the same time, the department also announced that it had begun shipping some $ 100 million in military equipment to Israel for pre-positioning. Defense officials have said that the equipment would likely include materiel such as ammunition and spare parts.

In short, when many congressmen talk about ending the Mideast arms race, they are referring solely to US sales to its Arab allies such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia. By not including Israel, they virtually doom any arms control initiatives to failure.

The Two Sides Of Foreign Aid

Although final congressional approval of a foreign aid authorization measure is problematic—Congress has not completed work on this politically unpopular legislation since 1985—the House Foreign Affairs Committee has established some Mideast policy parameters to be wrapped into a catchall appropriations bill if Congress again fails to enact authorizing legislation.

As in years past, the committee has set aside $3 billion in economic and military aid for Israel and $2.3 billion in aid for Egypt. Overall, these two countries account for just under 66 percent of the $8.1 billion in security assistance included in the House proposal.

The House committee bill also proposes increasing aid to Turkey, a key ally during the war with Iraq. While the administration had requested an increase of some $125 million in military aid to Turkey, the House panel slightly reduced the requested increase and shifted it into economic aid.

The committee's action comes hard on the heels of Congress' decision earlier this year to provide $650 million in emergency aid to Israel and $200 million to Turkey.

While finding enough money in the US budget in recent months to approve $3.6 billion in aid for Israel, the House panel voted against a proposal to add $9 million to the aid budget for Palestinians living in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip during its late May mark-up session. The proposed increase would have lifted aid to the Palestinians to $25 million from $16 million.

Strategic Oil Options

A Saudi proposal to repay with oil part or all of the roughly $10 billion it still owes the US for Desert Storm costs has gained the support of several congressmen, who urged in a May 10 letter to President Bush that the US use the oil to fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The letter was signed by House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt (D-MO); Rep. John Dingell (D-MI), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee; Rep. Leon Panetta (D-CA), chairman of the House Budget Committee; and Rep. Philip Sharp (D-IN), chairman of the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Power.

The swap would benefit both the Saudi and US governments, the four congressmen wrote. Specifically, the repayment proposal would: enable the Saudis to repay their debt without further exacerbating their current cash-flow difficulties; soak up some of the Kingdom's excess production capacity, now estimated at 300,000 barrels a day; and maintain world oil prices at current levels.

For the US, the proposal would substantially boost energy security, which would give the government greater pricing flexibility in future emergencies. "We realize that other considerations may argue for a rapid full repayment in cash, " the four continued. "However, a significant gain in our nation's energy security could be achieved by your timely commitment to rapidly fill the SPR."

Dennis J. Wamsted is a free-lance writer specializing in the Congress and Middle East affairs.