Gen. Natan Vilnai, chief of the Israel Defense Force Manpower Division has warned that the IDF will soon face a crisis with respect to career military personnel. In the past two years, more regular soldiers left the army for civilian life than had been anticipated, he said.
Vilnai was one of several senior IDF officers who spoke at a conference of the Kibbutz Artzi defense group this week. Kibbutz Artzi is affiliated with Mapam and is encouraging its members to consider enlisting in the armed forces both as a national duty and a kibbutz movement mission.
Vilnai said the IDF had “hoped for a controlled drop-out” rate after the withdrawal from Lebanon. “But in the end we lost control over who left and where. We have lost the in-between generation — those aged 24-32 — the future Chiefs of Staff and the commanders of tomorrow,” he said.
He said that in many instances, in order to keep military units up to strength “we reconcile ourselves to the fact that they are commanded by less able persons.” He lauded the kibbutz movement for its past efforts, adding that it was “inconceivable that the kibbutz movement would now say it has problems of its own and dissociates itself” from any military service responsibility.
‘CAREER-SOLDIER’ IS NOT A DIRTY WORD
One kibbutz member suggested that the movement must recognize that “career-soldier” is not a dirty word. The audience also heard from Chief of Staff Gen. Moshe Levy, who said the two main problems facing the IDF are military budget cuts and the need to keep pace with rapidly advancing high technology, both of which could affect IDF operational capabilities on a future battlefield. He said an increase in the IDF’s budget was unavoidable.
With respect to the Lavi, Israel’s controversial second-generation jet combat plane, Levy said it would be the outstanding aircraft of the Israel Air Force. He said the nation was coping with its design, development and production. The Lavi, which is financed largely with U.S. aid funds, has run into difficulties with the Pentagon over excessive production costs.
Responding to questions, Levy said reports of religious coercion in the armed forces were grossly exaggerated by the media.
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