by Danny Brenner, Reuters, and Israel Hayom Staff
Israeli Air Force chief Maj. Gen. Amir Eshel: "We're at peace with Egypt," says system a much bigger problem in the hands of Iran • President Reuven Rivlin makes military tour of northern border, says IDF is ready for anything.
Senior IDF officials brief
President Reuven Rivlin during a military tour of the northern border,
Wednesday
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Photo credit: Mark Nyman / GPO  |
Israeli Air Force commander Maj. Gen. Amir
Eshel on Wednesday played down worries voiced by some fellow officials
about the possibility of Egypt acquiring advanced Russian-made air
defenses.
The Russian news agency TASS said in March
Egypt would receive the Antey-2500 missile system, an S-300 variant, and
put the value of the contract at more than a billion dollars. Neither
Egypt nor Russia has formally confirmed it.
The S-300 would pose a challenge to Israel's air force.
Russia is also in talks to sell the system to
Iran, to the open consternation of Israel, which has long threatened to
attack its archfoe's nuclear facilities if it deems diplomatic efforts
to deny Tehran the bomb to have failed.
"It [an Iranian S-300] is a very big
challenge. It is a strategic problem long before it is an operational
problem," Eshel told reporters on the sidelines of a conference on
Wednesday.
"Someone who has an S-300 feels protected and can do more aggressive things because he feels protected," he said.
But Eshel brushed off any suggestions Israel
would be concerned about an Egyptian S-300, telling reporters: "Are you
kidding me? We're at peace with them."
In a state of stable albeit cold peace since
1979, Israel and Egypt have in recent years stepped up security
coordination against Islamist militants.
"We're all for Egypt getting anything it needs
from the United States for counterterrorism," a senior Israeli military
officer said on condition of anonymity this month.
"The problem is that the S-300 has nothing to do with counterterrorism."
A U.S. official said he had heard "muted" misgivings over the S-300 deal, but that the Israelis seemed resigned to it.
"They have a problem because here they are
telling us we should give [Egypt] all this kit for Sinai, and yet they
have problems with certain other weapons systems. They're aware that
it's a mixed message, and they don't want to risk that," the official
told Reuters on condition of anonymity.
Egypt depends on extensive U.S. military aid, which can potentially be influenced by Israel's own lobbying in Washington.
Meanwhile, President Reuven Rivlin toured Israel's northern border with top army officials on Wednesday.
Rivlin started his visit at the Gibor camp
near Kiryat Shmona, where Deputy Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Yair Golan,
Northern Command chief Maj. Gen. Aviv Kochavi and 91st Division
commander Brig. Gen. Moni Katz presented the current challenges posed by
the Hezbollah presence on the Lebanese border and various perspectives
on events in Syria.
From the Gibor camp, the president continued
to a military observation post at Kibbutz Misgav Am, and from there went
to the Lilach outpost, where he met with soldiers serving in the
Armored Corps and the Golani Brigade.
"The pastoral view before my eyes doesn't fool
the citizens of Israel and it doesn't trick the IDF, which is standing
ready and willing," Rivlin told the troops.
"I came to thank you for your impressive work, which makes [us all] proud," the president said.
Danny Brenner, Reuters, and Israel Hayom Staff
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=25773
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
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