IDF chief okays comprehensive upgrade program for the military - Haaretz

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Mon., September 10, 2007 Elul 27, 5767

Israel Time: 02:18 (EST+7)

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		Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi. (Tess Scheflan / Bau Bau)

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Last update - 07:11 04/09/2007

IDF chief okays comprehensive upgrade program for the military

By Yuval Azoulay, Haaretz Correspondent

Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi approved on Monday a multi-year, multi-dimensional procurement program for the Israel Defense Forces that seeks to prepare for the broad range of security threats Israel is expected to face in the coming decade.

If the political leadership approves the program, its implementation will begin early next year.

The procurement program, code-named Tefen, includes advanced systems for all branches of the IDF but much of the emphasis is placed on equipping the ground forces while sustaining the right mix "to ensure that we are not preparing for the last war," as one senior officer put it.

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Acknowledging the difficult task of preparing a procurement plan that "offers a response to all the challenges" facing Israel, a senior officer said that while "three or four years ago the priority went to the confrontation with the Palestinians, in the current circumstances it is difficult to know what we will have to focus on next time."

The many weeks of deliberations on the right mix of technology and hardware were clearly influenced by the experiences of the Second Lebanon War, which pushed many of the senior officers to decide that it was paramount to bolster the ground forces.

On a broader level, developments in the Middle East, with the likelihood that Iran will acquire nuclear capability by 2012 topping the considerations of the planners, weighed in favor of long-range weapons platforms and weapons.

Explaining the fluidity of the situation, a senior officer listed the possible threats, each bringing its own level of intensity to the battlefield: "global terrorism, the northern border, the Iranians or the new arms supplies of Syria."

Deputy Chief of Staff Moshe Kaplinsky also told reporters on Monday that the IDF will seek to bolster the basic fighting capabilities of its units.

"The aim of the program is to prepare for fighting on different fronts, be it against terrorism that surrounds us, threats posed by conventional armies but also against strategic [non-conventional] threats. Contrary to previous years, this plan does not flinch, but bolsters and strengthens the IDF."

In bolstering the ground forces, the IDF will invest in forming another reservist division (and possibly a second), it will procure hundreds of new armored personnel carriers and continue the production of Merkava Mark IV main battle tanks. In addition, anti-missile defenses will be incorporated in the modern tanks but also in many of the Mark III and Mark II Merkavas.

American-made Stryker-wheeled fighting vehicles and Namer armored personnel carriers, based on the Merkava chassis, will also be procured in large numbers.

The IDF will also invest resources in developing the next generation anti-ballistic missile system, which will incorporate the Arrow 3, as well as Rafael's Iron Dome missile defense system for countering Katyusha and Qassam rockets.

By 2012-13, Israel expects to begin receiving into the ranks of its air force a squadron of stealth-capable F-35 Strike Fighters, capable of reaching deep into Iran. While the aircraft are not due to arrive for five to six years, the air force will begin the necessary preparations soon.

Sources in the IDF said Monday that it is possible that during the next decade the air force may procure one or two more squadrons of F-35 fighters.

The Navy is also planning to procure two multi-purpose ships, large enough to carry two naval helicopters and other systems.

A decision was made not to invest in the construction of a fence along the long border with Egypt, even though it is porous and is used by smugglers, refugees and at times militants for crossing into Israel. IDF sources said they recognized the threat along this front, but the priority is to invest resources in the separation fence with the Palestinians and ensure it is completed.

The IDF is also planning to undertake a series of steps toward greater efficiency, mainly through the sale of real estate assets, with the revenue being used for the procurement program.

"It is important for this program to get under way and take shape, and this requires the state to maintain resources for it, as it is committed to do; otherwise many of its elements will collapse," a senior officer said.

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1.	Perhaps it should upgrade ability of soldiers to obey orders.	02:27	\|	Don Camillo	04/09/07

2.	Don Camillo	06:44	\|	Avigdor	04/09/07

3.	#1 Camillo	06:49	\|	* BEN JABO	04/09/07

4.	There is no remedy for fat, spoiled, cowardly IDF	08:04	\|	Hannah	04/09/07

5.	Re: Hannah	08:50	\|	Lenny	04/09/07

6.	Don`t forget the tanks!!	09:29	\|	Natallie Durson	04/09/07

7.	#5, Lenny	09:45	\|	Hannah	04/09/07

8.	And meanwhile, 1.6 million Israelis live in poverty	10:01	\|	Clickfool	04/09/07

9.	Better Late Than Never But Has He Been Sleeping	12:10	\|	D.Ploy	04/09/07

10.	#6 NUT allie Durson	14:12	\|	* BEN JABO	04/09/07

11.	Just look at that photo above...	05:54	\|	Silvienne	06/09/07

12.	#3, Ben Jabo to Dom Camillo...	05:57	\|	Silvienne	06/09/07

13.	Lenny	06:00	\|	Silvienne	06/09/07

14.	Natalie...	06:02	\|	Silvienne	06/09/07

15.	Clickfool...	06:06	\|	Silvienne	06/09/07

16.	#12 Silvienne	16:24	\|	* BEN JABO	06/09/07

17.	#12 Silvienne - I`ve already posted a reply to this	18:41	\|	* BEN JABO	06/09/07

18.	#11 Silvienne - Ask bill O`Reilly at Fox News	21:09	\|	* BEN JABO	06/09/07

19.	#16, Ben Jabo...you won`t admit I won anyway!	04:54	\|	Silvienne	07/09/07

20.	#17, Ben Jabo...I therefore take it that....	05:01	\|	Silvienne	07/09/07

21.	#19 Silvienne - You won ZILCH	18:28	\|	* BEN JABO	07/09/07

22.	Bem Jabo...I already have, in more than one thread...	03:33	\|	Silvienne	08/09/07

23.	#22 2ND TRY Silvienne	18:10	\|	* BEN JABO	09/09/07

24.	#23, Ben Jabo...Well, really!	04:11	\|	Silvienne	10/09/07

25.	#24 Silvienne - Stop the false indignation	17:34	\|	* BEN JABO	10/09/07

26.	#24 2ND TRY Silviienne	22:54	\|	* BEN JABO	10/09/07

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