Weekly Commentary: U.S. Sanctions Threat? Minimizing Reliance on US Defense
Material Supply Chain
Dr. Aaron Lerner 22 December 2022

The veiled and not so veiled threats from American officials if the
Netanyahu coalition dares to take any action which offends their
sensibilities has reached the point that it may very well become a self
fulfilling prophecy.

It pains me to write that it would not surprise me if some of the lefty
former senior Israeli security officials are already now whispering into
American ears about the need for American sanctions to save Israel from
itself.

Sanctions can come in many forms, but the simplest "two by four" to clobber
us with is delays in military supplies.

So this is what I asked Rafael:

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Subject: Question from IMRA News Will some components or subcomponents of
the Iron Beam units serving Israel's own needs be manufactured in the United
States as a result of Rafael's collaboration with Lockheed Martin?

Dear Ishai David - Rafael Spokesman's Office

The announcement of Rafael's collaboration with Lockheed Martin appeared to
indicate that the joint Iron Beam program would be separate from the Iron
Beam program serving Israel's own needs.

Question:

1. Will some components or subcomponents of the Iron Beam units serving
Israel's own needs be manufactured in the United States as a result of
Rafael's collaboration with Lockheed Martin?

2. Regardless of Rafael's collaboration with Lockheed Martin, will the Iron
Beam units serving Israel's own needs rely on components or subcomponents
made in the United States?

Background: In the last week there were numerous reports that American
officials warned Israel that Israeli moves vis-à-vis the Palestinians could
impact American cooperation with Israel. There is a long history of America
responding to Israeli action opposed by the United States by delaying
supplies of military equipment. It is therefore of interest what exposure
the supply of Iron Beam units serving Israel's own needs would have to such
American measures.

Best regards,
Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis
www.imra.org.il
Tel xxxxxxx
PS: You can reply in Hebrew if you prefer.
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So far no reply.

There will no doubt be very tempting to have Lockheed Martin produce the
subcomponents which are common to both the "domestic" and "export" versions
of Iron Beam.

The consideration wouldn't just be efficiency as it might be possible to
work out that the Lockheed Martin produced subcomponents for the "domestic"
version of Iron Beam could be covered by American funding.

By the same token, there is no reason to expect a shift in the general
purchasing policy of the Ministry of Defense which favors supplied for free
from America over "Paid in Israel for Made in Israel".

It is a shortsighted policy.

We are not a poor country.

We can afford to drop the American defense funding just as years ago
Netanyahu voluntarily dropped American nondefense funding.

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IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis

Since 1992 providing news and analysis on the Middle East with a focus on
Arab-Israeli relations

Website: www.imra.org.il