Archives: December 2012 the Treasury Min. Steinitz opposed heavy APC - but
appeared to want system to protect APCs
[Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA: In the wake of the deaths of soldiers who entered
Gaza in light APCs items are circulating citing this December 2012 interview
with then Treasury Minister Yuval Steinitz. A closer reading, however,
makes it a bit more complicated: Steinitz argued that it would be cheaper
to invest in equipping lighter APC's with protective systems than building
heavier APCs. So it isn't that Steinitz wanted the IDF to send in forces in
light unprotected APCs - he wanted those APCs to have the equivalent of
Trophy to protect them from attack.]


"The Defense System Abounds with Conceptual Fixations"
"After elections, we won't be able to avoid a substantial cut to the defense
budget", says Israeli Treasury Minister Yuval Steinitz in a special
interview with IsraelDefense.
Amir Rapaport 29/12/2012
http://www.israeldefense.com/?CategoryID=483&ArticleID=1866
...
What you are claiming, in fact, is that we should actually call off the
Namer project?

"Yes, it is no secret that I opposed the Namer program, as I think it is a
waste of funds for nothing. It may have been appropriate 10-20 years ago, or
15 years ago, to develop and manufacture a heavy APC – but not today. We
have entered an era where we develop electronic protection systems, like the
avionics systems - protective suits – that aircraft have, or the systems
that ships have – we now manufacture for tanks. I refer to systems like the
'Trophy' by Rafael or the 'Iron Fist' by Israel Military Industries. So we
have advanced and reached the point where we are capable of developing radar
and surveillance systems, and automatic hardkill systems, electronic
protection systems with automatic hard-kill systems that provide full
spectrum protection that is lighter and relatively cheaper than heavy armor
(taking into account all of the various costs involved, including engines)
and more effective. So going back to heavy armor, when it seems to me like a
fatal mistake. There are many other people within the defense system, even
former generals, including very senior commanders in the IDF land arm, who
believe it is a mistake."

So how come you have not succeeded in stopping it? Apparently, minister
Moshe (Bogie) Ya'alon, a former chief of staff, also opposes the Namer?

"It is all very nice that everyone is against it, but under the pressure
exerted by the defense system, there was only one minister who voted
against – me. Now the project is already under way. Commitments were made
vis-a-vis the US (General Dynamics manufactures the hull of the APC at its
own facilities, on account of US FMS funds) as well as vis-a-vis Israeli
labor and now it is hard to stop – although this is what we should have
done."


What about the Merkava tank? Do you think that this project should be
stopped as well?
"No. The Merkava is a different story, but the Namer is an example of the
irresponsible conduct of the defense system, which says to itself: 'we will
always be able to obtain the resources'."