[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 508 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 508

 Expressing support for the expeditious consideration and finalization 
of a new, robust, and long-term Memorandum of Understanding on military 
   assistance to Israel between the United States Government and the 
                         Government of Israel.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 22, 2016

  Mr. Rubio (for himself, Mr. Coons, Ms. Ayotte, Mr. Casey, Mr. Kirk, 
 Mrs. Gillibrand, Mr. Isakson, Mr. Booker, Mr. Perdue, Mr. Kaine, Mr. 
 Cotton, Mr. Peters, Mr. Hatch, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Cruz, Mr. Warner, 
   Mr. Boozman, Mr. Cornyn, and Mr. Roberts) submitted the following 
  resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing support for the expeditious consideration and finalization 
of a new, robust, and long-term Memorandum of Understanding on military 
   assistance to Israel between the United States Government and the 
                         Government of Israel.

Whereas in April 1998 the United States designated Israel as a ``major non-NATO 
        ally'';
Whereas, on August 16, 2007, the United States and Israel signed a 10-year 
        Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on United States military assistance 
        to Israel, under which total assistance would equal $30,000,000,000;
Whereas, since the signing of the 2007 Memorandum of Understanding, intelligence 
        and defense cooperation has continued to grow;
Whereas, on October 15, 2008, the Naval Vessel Transfer Act of 2008 was signed 
        into law (Public Law 110-429), defining Israel's qualitative military 
        edge (QME) as ``the ability to counter and defeat any credible 
        conventional military threat from any individual state or possible 
        coalition of states or from non-state actors, while sustaining minimal 
        damage and casualties, through the use of superior military means, 
        possessed in sufficient quantity, including weapons, command, control, 
        communication, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance 
        capabilities that in their technical characteristics are superior in 
        capability to those of such other individual or possible coalition of 
        states or non-state actors'';
Whereas, on July 27, 2012, the United States-Israel Enhanced Security 
        Cooperation Act of 2012 (Public Law 112-150) declared it to be the 
        policy of the United States ``to help the Government of Israel preserve 
        its qualitative military edge amid rapid and uncertain regional 
        political transformation'';
Whereas Israel faces immediate threats to its security from the United States-
        designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, Hezbollah, and its missile 
        and rocket stockpile estimated to number around 150,000, and from the 
        United States-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, Hamas, which 
        continues to attempt to rebuild its tunnel network to infiltrate Israel 
        and restock its own missile and rocket stockpiles;
Whereas Israel also faces immediate threats to its security from the ongoing 
        regional instability in the Middle East, especially from the ongoing 
        conflict in Syria and from militant groups in the Sinai;
Whereas Iran remains a threat to Israel, as demonstrated by Iran's continued 
        bellicosity, including several hostile and provocative tests of 
        ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, even reportedly 
        marking several of these weapons with Hebrew words declaring ``Israel 
        must be wiped out'';
Whereas the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (Public Law 
        114-92) authorized funds to be appropriated for Israeli cooperative 
        missile defense program codevelopment and coproduction, including funds 
        to be provided to the Government of Israel to procure the David's Sling 
        weapon system as well as the Arrow 3 Upper Tier Interceptor Program; and
Whereas, on December 19, 2014, President Barack Obama signed into law the United 
        States-Israel Strategic Partnership Act of 2014 (Public Law 113-296), 
        which stated the sense of Congress that Israel is a major strategic 
        partner of the United States and declared it to be the policy of the 
        United States ``to continue to provide Israel with robust security 
        assistance, including for the procurement of the Iron Dome Missile 
        Defense System'': Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) reaffirms that Israel is a major strategic partner of 
        the United States;
            (2) reaffirms that it is the policy and law of the United 
        States to ensure that Israel maintains its qualitative military 
        edge and has the capacity and capability to defend itself from 
        all credible military threats;
            (3) reaffirms United States support of a robust Israeli 
        tiered missile defense program;
            (4) supports continued discussions between the United 
        States Government and the Government of Israel for a robust and 
        long-term Memorandum of Understanding on United States military 
        assistance to Israel;
            (5) urges the expeditious finalization of a new Memorandum 
        of Understanding between the United States Government and the 
        Government of Israel; and
            (6) supports a robust and long-term Memorandum of 
        Understanding negotiated between the United States and Israel 
        regarding military assistance that increases the amount of aid 
        from previous agreements and significantly enhances Israel's 
        military capabilities.
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