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 | Olmert's Final Gift to RussiaOlmert and allies hope a gift of prime J'lm real estate, part of the Sergei Compound, will convince Russia not to sell arms to Israel's enemies. |
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1. Olmert's Final Gift to Russia
Cabinet ministers are to discuss on Sunday the transfer of property rights over the Sergei Compound in
If, as expected, the government gives its final approval, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will present a part of the compound as a gift to
The building, part of which was once used by the former Soviet Republic, is located in the very heart of the capital. It is slated to be turned over to the Russian government but has not yet been formally transferred, pending a ruling on the legality of the decision by the Supreme Court.
The property, which originally belonged to
The Sergei building, church and courtyard, however, were part of the remaining 10 percent that was not included in the deal and until the 1967 Six Day War served as the local KGB spy nook.
The decision to transfer the property to the Russian government this year was made weeks ago by a committee comprised of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, Justice Minister Daniel Friedmann and Finance Minister Ronnie Bar-On.
Opposition in Court to the Transfer of Property
The Legal Forum for the Land of Israel has opposed the transfer of the property to the Russian government from the beginning, saying it is not wise to hand over land in the heart of the capital to a nation that is a fickle friend at best. The organization is arguing that the Cabinet is presently limited in what it is legally authorized to do.
"The current government is a transitional government and according to the Supreme Court ruling, its authority as such is limited to actions which are continuous 'maintenance actions' in their nature," read a letter to Attorney General Menachem Mazuz and senior government officials. "It cannot make important and irreversible decisions which future governments will have to deal with."
Jerusalem mayoral candidate Nir Barkat also warned against the move, saying the transfer of Sergei's Courtyard in
Hoping to Persuade
Olmert is trying to win favor from
Less than a year ago, the Kremlin also sold the Islamic Republic a very advanced surface-to-air anti-aircraft missile defense system to protect its nuclear facilities, despite concerns that Iran is actively engaged in building a nuclear weapon.
The Iskander missile, a more advanced and lethal projectile than a Scud missile or Katyusha rocket, has a range of 280 kilometers and could easily hit most population centers in Israel if fired from Syria's border at the Golan Heights.
2. TASE Falls Amid Gov't Optimism
The Finance Ministry's optimistic talk on the economy fell on deaf ears of investors who continued to dump stocks in the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange on Sunday.
Shortly after noon, the TA 25 broke below 811, dropping more than 4.2 percent. The TA 100 plummeted 4.69 percent to 725, and the Tel-Tech 15 was down 7 percent. Real estate stocks also slumped, dropping by 7.66 percent to 225.50. Potash producers were down 8 to 10 percent.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met with Bank of
The U.S. Senate voted early last week to approve a massive $700 billion bailout plan after the House of Representatives narrowly defeated the measure, which was designed to stem the bleeding in
Israeli investors, as well as those around the rest of the world, have become increasingly nervous as one American financial institution after the other began to topple. The largest bank failure in
Official Efforts to Inject Investors with Confidence in
Contrary to other financial experts, Bachar told listeners Sunday morning on Voice of Israel government radio that he sees no reason for people to be worried about their savings in Israeli banks.
"In a period of uncertainty such as this, we need balanced consideration, not to come out with bombastic announcements and not assessments that cause people to take actions they otherwise would not," he said. "We see in the
Bachar emphasized that the past five years have shown strong economic growth in the Jewish State, a trend he said has resulted in a strong economy that he believes will be more than a match to weather the fiscal storm emanating from shaky world finances.
Bank of
3. Radar May Expose Israeli Secrets
Israeli officials are worried that the advanced X-Band radar system that U.S. military forces have deployed in the Negev recently will expose Israeli secrets to American eyes. Time magazine quoted an unnamed "top official" who said the system will allow the U.S. to keep a close watch on anything moving in Israeli skies, "even a bee."
The official said that while the U.S. is a close ally, Israel nonetheless has aviation secrets it would rather not share. “Even a husband and wife have a few things they’d like to keep from each other,” he explained, and added: “Now we’re standing without our clothes on in front of America.."
'Why did we take this?'
Israeli defense experts are reportedly also worried that waves from the X-band radar might throw off the accuracy of a new Gil anti-tank missile also being tested in the Negev. "Th
“Even a husband and wife have a few things they’d like to keep from each other.”
e Bush Administration is in the mood to give us anything, as long as we don't attack Iran," said one senior official. "So why did we take this radar?"
Israel will have no direct access to the data collected by the radar and will only be fed intelligence second-hand, on a need-to-know basis, unless the radar picks up an immediate, direct attack on Israel, Israeli sources said.
Israeli officials also expressed concern that the radar’s installation may anger Moscow, since its range will enable the U.S. to monitor aircraft in the skies over southern Russia. When the U.S. stationed anti-missile radar and interceptor systems in Poland and the Czech Republic, Moscow warned those countries that they could be added to the target list of Russia’s missiles.
Doubling the detection range
"This is and will remain a U.S. radar system," Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said. "So this is not something we are giving or selling to the Israelis and it is something that will likely require U.S. personnel on-site to operate."
Morrell said the X-band radar, developed by Raytheon, would more than double the range of Israel's detection capabilities of enemy missile launches. The Pentagon spokesman did not cite a specific range, but other officials said the U.S. radar would be able to provide detection at a distance of more than 2,000 kilometers.
"This will enable the Israelis to track medium-and-long-range ballistic missiles multiple times better than their current radar allows them to," Morrell said. "So it greatly enhances their self-defense. And we are, if nothing else, committed to the Israelis, Israel's defense."
Info on everything that flies
“America has just as much interest in what is going on in the region as we do,” a senior Israeli defense official explained to the Jerusalem Post. “Keep in mind that while we will receive the radar data, the Americans will be controlling the system and using it for their purposes, as well."
The radar will also provide information on everything that flies – including small objects such as drones – within its range. This will make it possible for the U.S. to know immediately if, for example, Israel moves against Hamas in Gaza or Hizbullah in Lebanon.
Dr. Aaron Lerner of Independent Media Review Analysis (IMRA) commented however that "It isn't clear what 'secrets' about Israel the radar would supply considering that tiny Israel is already well within range of ship-board radar systems."
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