Meng and Roskam Urge Support for U.S.-Israel Defense Cooperation

March 23, 2016
Press Release

U.S. Representatives Grace Meng (D-NY) and Peter J. Roskam (R-IL) called on a key House Committee to continue funding for U.S.-Israel defense cooperation programs.

In a letter to the Chair and Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, the lawmakers urged the panel to robustly support critical cooperative programs for fiscal year 2017, including:

  • Arrow System Improvement Program (ASIP) to counter long-range ballistic missiles
  • Arrow-3 system designed to shoot down ballistic missiles outside the earth’s atmosphere
  • David’s Sling Weapon System (DSWS) designed to intercept short-range ballistic missiles, guided projectiles, cruise missiles, aircraft and drones
  • Iron Dome defense system to counter short-range rocket threats
  • Continued development of a new, joint U.S.-Israel anti-tunneling defense program which could be used to protect Israel and U.S. forces from terrorist attacks

“Continued defense cooperation with Israel is critical,” said Rep. Meng, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and its Subcommittee on the Middle East. “Israel must have the ability to defend itself, and maintaining funding for these programs is essential for the Jewish state to combat attacks and threats from a wide array of hostile adversaries. I thank the Subcommittee on Defense for its past investments in these programs, and I respectfully urge the panel to continue doing so.”

“U.S.-Israel defense cooperation enhances Israel’s defense capability and ensures our armed forces have access to cutting edge, battle-proven missile defense technology,” said Rep. Roskam, who also serves as Co-Chair of the GOP Israel Caucus. “Iron Dome’s near 90% success during Operation Protective Edge in 2014 once again proved its value. The product of an American-Israeli partnership saves lives, prevents conflict escalation, and advances U.S. objectives by promoting regional stability. We must also continue to work with Israel on Arrow-3 and David's Sling in order to confront increasingly sophisticated missile threats from Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran.”

The full letter can be viewed here. It follows similar requests made by Reps. Meng and Roskam in 2014 and 2015 which resulted in increased support for Israel’s missile defense systems.