Influence and arms: John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and the politics of arms sales to Israel, 1962-1966

This article examines the relationship between Israel and the United States in the years immediately preceding the June 1967 War. In doing so, it challenges the widely held view that prior to Israel's victory in that war the United States refrained from any significant strategic relationship wi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Israel affairs 2004, Vol.10 (1-2), p.29-59
Main Author: Ben-Zvi, Abraham
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Arab Israeli Relations
Arms Trade
Foreign Policy
International Alliances
Israel
United States of America
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Summary:This article examines the relationship between Israel and the United States in the years immediately preceding the June 1967 War. In doing so, it challenges the widely held view that prior to Israel's victory in that war the United States refrained from any significant strategic relationship with the Jewish state. In particular, by examining in detail the decision of the Kennedy and Johnson administrations to sell advanced military hardware - the Hawk short-range anti-aircraft missile, the M-48A Patton tank and the A-4E SkyhawK fighter-bomber - to Israel in the first half of the 1960s, it clearly shows that the seeds of a strategic partnership had been planted prior to Israel's comprehensive defeat of its Arab opponents in 1967.
ISSN:1353-7121
1743-9086
DOI:10.1080/13537120412331321361