Israel concluded an agreement with the Pentagon to buy 12 Boeing Apache attack helicopters. The Defence Ministry plans deliveries at the start of the next decade. Financing the purchase also draws on money earmarked for Arab communities, according to the Finance Ministry, bringing the procurement into a dispute over public spending shortly before elections.
Israel concluded an agreement with the Pentagon to buy 12 Boeing Apache attack helicopters on 14 October.[1], [2]
Israel’s Defence Ministry said the helicopters would be the Echo variant, with deliveries planned at the beginning of the next decade. Ministry director general Amir Baram instructed its Washington delegation to sign the agreement. He said solutions developed with American partners had made completing the transaction possible.[1]
The Finance Ministry told The Jerusalem Post that close to one billion shekels for the purchase would be diverted from a five-year development plan for Arab communities. A further 68 million shekels would come from the current budget. The government was preparing a wider 3.5 billion shekel allocation for urgent defence procurement, including money for the helicopters.[1]
A legal opinion accompanying the decision raised concerns about restricting the incoming government’s choices and putting party interests ahead of the public interest shortly before elections. It also concluded that security needs made bringing the procurement forward necessary. Defence Minister Israel Katz called the purchase an important force-building step, while Boeing Israel president Ido Nehushtan said the company would work closely with the Israeli government.[1]
