‘ Israel to bank on next US Prez for aid pact’

Jerusalem/ Washington, Feb. 9: Israel may be unable to reach a new defence aid agreement with the Obama administration and could wait for the next US President to secure better terms, a senior Israeli official said on Monday in a veiled rebuke signalling a snag in negotiations.

But a senior US official urged Israel to accept an increased 10- year multibilliondollar package that President Barack Obama is offering, saying whoever occupies the White House next would be unlikely to demonstrate any greater commitment to Israel’s security.

Differences between the two sides, which surfaced after a round of negotiations on a new defence memorandum of understanding last week, underscored continuing tensions over the 2015 US- led nuclear deal with Iran, Israel’s regional arch- foe.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quoted by local media on Monday as telling his Cabinet that if Israel’s security needs were not sufficiently met, he would hold off on signing an aid deal and wait for the next US President, who will take office next January.

Mr Netanyahu, who has a history of testy relations with Mr Obama, might be hoping for more sympathetic treatment from the next American administration, whether Democratic or Republican.

However, his comments could also be a negotiating ploy to win concessions.

In an apparent swipe at the Obama administration, Cabinet minister Zeev Elkin, a Netanyahu confidant in the ruling right- wing Likud party, said Israel was still waiting for a realistic offer from the United States.

Current US defence payouts to Israel, worth about $ 3 billion annually, expire in 2018. Officials say Mr Netanyahu opened talks with a request for an increase to $ 5 billion annually, an amount the United States was unlikely to accept.