The general said the US needs to assess its own capacity and readiness before sending aid to allies.
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
A top US general admitted on Thursday that Israel hasn’t received all of the weapons it requested, but says this doesn’t signal a policy change, Reuters reports.
U.S. General Charles Q. Brown Jr.,chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that the US needs to ensure its own military readiness and given capacity limits, the US didn’t supply all of the weapons Israel asked for.
The United States provides Israel with $3.8 billion yearly in military aid, and amid the controversy over Israel’s current war with Hamas, members of the Progressive left and Arab American groups have demanded that the US cut or condition aid to the Jewish State.
However, US Vice President Kamala Harris stated recently that there would not be conditions on aid to Israel.
General Brown said of Israel aid, “Although we’ve been supporting them with capability, they’ve not received everything they’ve asked for.”
“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,” he added.
Brown said that assessing US military needs is “a standard practice before providing military aid to any of our allies and partners.”
Navy Captain Jereal Dorsey said in a statement, “We assess U.S. stockpiles and any possible impact on our own readiness to determine our ability to provide the requested aid.”
He added, “There is no change in U.S. policy. The United States continues to provide security assistance to our ally Israel as they defend themselves from Hamas.”
US President Joe Biden has received significant backlash from his own Democratic party over his administration’s support for Israel.
During the Democratic Primary, “Uncommitted” voters took double-digit percentages of the vote in some states.
A rift has developed between Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Israel’s proposed operation in Rafah to eliminate the last of the Hamas battalions.
Although President Biden has pointed to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the 1.4 million Palestinian refugees, Netanyahu has stressed the importance of the Rafah operation for “total victory” over Hamas.
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