US providing Israel with more arms

The United States is planning to provide another package of advanced weapons to Israel in a bid to elevate the arms race in the Middle East.

The U.S. State Department said the discussions between the United States and Israel about the arms deal are ongoing, USA Today reported.

Air-refueling aircraft, advanced radars for F-15 fighter jets and up to eight V-22 Ospreys are among the new weapons.

Landing like a helicopter, Ospreys can carry two dozen special operations forces over long distances at aircraft speeds.

The deal would be part of a military package for Tel Aviv that includes one billion dollars for up to eight 

V-22 tilt-rotors; $500 million to retrofit radars into F-15 fighters and another one billion dollars for a variety of air-to-ground weapons.

A Defense Department press release said the package includes Boeing's KC-135 "Stratotanker" that can refuel Ospreys and other aircraft while airborne and extend the tilt-rotor aircraft's 426-mile range almost indefinitely.

It also includes anti-radiation missiles that are used to target air defense systems, and advanced radars for Israel's fleet of F-15 fighter jets.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday in order to talk about the weapons deal.

A Congressional Research Service (CRS) report shows that the United States gave Israel more than $67 billion of taxpayer-funded military aid grants and loans between 1968 and 2008.

In 2007, the administration of former president George W. Bush signed an agreement with Israel to provide an additional $30 billion in weapons from 2009 to 2018.

Israel has been and continues to be allowed to use approximately 25 percent of the U.S. military aid to purchase equipment from manufacturers.

According to CRS, “no other recipient of U.S. military assistance has been granted this benefit.”

Washington is increasing efforts to arm Middle East states and start a weapons race in the strategically important part of the world. 

The administration of U.S. President Barack Obama has shored up Persian Gulf littoral states -- Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, UAE and Kuwait -- with major arms deals in recent years. 

The arms deals include a record multi-billion plan to sell Saudi Arabia advanced F-15 aircraft, some 2,000-lb JDAMs and other powerful munitions. The U.S. also approved the sale of a multi-billion terminal missile program to the United Arab Emirates.(Press TV)