Kahlon Counsels Closure on MOU

YERUSHALAYIM
Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon (Miriam Alster/Flash90)
Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

Amid reports that Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman is close to finalizing the multi-year military aid package in Washington, Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon said on Monday that Israel should accept the American offer without further delay.

“The offer is positive and fair. Our security services can get by with the current offer,” Kahlon said at a Kulanu party meeting. “I told the prime minister and defense minister, and I say to them today: Adopt the offer and put an end to this saga.”

In addition, he cautioned that putting off the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) in the hope that a better deal could be struck with the next president entailed unacceptable political risks.

“There’s no reason we should do things that could be interpreted as involvement in America’s internal affairs,” he stated.

Meanwhile, a senior Israeli official in Washington told The Jerusalem Post on Monday that the new ten-year accord is “very close” to completion.

Speaking after high-level meetings between the two sides, the official said that Israel wants to wrap up negotiations soon and dismissed reports that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is waiting until after the U.S. presidential elections to close a deal.

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