Energy Minister Yitzhak Modai proposed that Israel sign a military alliance with the U.S. rather than try to revive the 1981 memorandum of understanding on strategic cooperation.
Speaking on Voice of Israel Radio Tuesday, just a week before Premier Yitzhak Shamir and Defense Minister Moshe Arens are to meet with President Reagan at the White House, Modai said the memorandum, initialed by the two countries but never implemented, could have done considerable damage. It is possible, he said, that memorandum prompted Syria to sign its friendship treaty with the Soviet Union.
According to Modai, a leader of Likud’s Liberal Party wing, a U.S.-Israeli military pact would be much more meaningful because it would commit the U.S. to provide substantial military assistance to Israel if it is attacked.
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