US, Israel Begin Talks to Renew 10-Year Defense Agreement - Obama

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Washington and Tel Aviv will start negotiations on a new long-term military assistance package, or memorandum of understanding (MOU), during Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington, DC this week, US President Barack Obama said on Monday.

“A lot of our time will be spent on a memorandum of understanding that we can potentially negotiate. It will be expiring in a couple of years, but we want to get a head start on that to make sure that both the United States and Israel can plan effectively for our defense needs going forward,” Obama said before a bilateral meeting with Netanyahu at the White House.

The current US-Israel MOU, which will expire in 2017, provides Israel with $3.1 billion in aid annually, and is aimed at bolstering the security of the United States’ strongest ally in the Middle East.

US and Israeli media have reported that Netanyahu will seek an increase in defense funding when the two countries renew the MOU for the next ten years. Netanyahu will reportedly be negotiating for $50 billion over the next ten years, a $1.9 billion increase in annual funding.