Washington: US President Barack Obama has signed a bill deepening US-Israeli cooperation and says the legislation reinforces “critical defence and security programmes.”
Obama says the legislation also lays the groundwork for increased trade and cooperation between the US and the Israelis.
However, Obama says his administration will interpret certain sections in a manner that does not interfere with his constitutional authority to conduct diplomacy. That includes a section requiring the administration to provide Congress certain diplomatic communications.
The US-Israel Strategic Partnership Act increases the value of emergency US weaponry kept in Israel by $200 million (Dh735 million), to a total of $1.8 billion. It promotes closer US-Israeli links in energy, water, homeland security, alternative fuel technology and cybersecurity.
It also offers a verbal guarantee of Israel maintaining a qualitative military edge over its neighbours.
