Steve Quayle News Alerts

July 18, 2002

TEL AVIV — China is ready to restore full defense ties with Israel after pressure from the United States caused Israel to cancel its sale of the Phalcon airborne early-warning system to Beijing.

The United States has quietly warned Israel not to sell strategic systems to China.

Israeli parliamentarians touring China and meeting senior officials said Beijing has closed the book on the Phalcon episode and wants to discuss new defense and military deals with Israel, Middle East Newsline reported.

The parliamentarians said China has also assured Israel that Beijing will not sell weapons of mass destruction to Middle East states. However, a major Pentagon report released on July 12 reached the opposite conclusion.

"They have put aside the Phalcon episode and plan to resume relations as before the Phalcon," Knesset member Yosef Lapid said.

U.S. officials said Israel and China are discussing the sale of major defense and weapons systems, including unmanned air vehicles and a reconnaissance satellite.

Lapid was one of three parliamentarians who met their Chinese counterparts as well as senior defense officials and strategists last week. The Israeli delegation was comprised of members from the powerful Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.

Another parliamentarian, Ran Cohen, said he would recommend that Israel improve its economic relations with China. Cohen said China was eager to increase trade and imports from Israel. He did not elaborate.

"We also wanted to talk about the economic element and this particularly was what China wanted to talk about," Cohen said. "China wants very much to open a new chapter and increase the level of relations with us. The Chinese market is a tremendous challenge for the Israeli economy."

Cohen also said that he was told by China's deputy prime minister that Beijing will not sell WMD components or technology to Middle East countries. Beijing provided such a pledge to the United States in 2000 but officials in Washington said China is continuing such sales.

The visit by the Israeli parliamentary delegation followed that of an Israeli military delegation tour of Chinese army bases. The Israeli military delegation was said to have included the leading researcher in the Israel's military technology and logistics division.

http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/breaking_2.html