BEIRUT — U.S. President Joe Biden has cleared $47 million in military aid to Lebanon, but as an expert explained to Defense News, this doesn’t mean the Lebanese Armed Forces will receive that amount.
Under sections 552(c)(2) and 506(a)(1) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, Biden authorized the secretary of state to “direct the drawdown of up to $25 million in commodities and services from the inventory and resources of any agency” and “direct the drawdown of up to $22 million in defense articles and services from the Department of Defense” to support Lebanon’s military, per a Sept. 7 statement from the White House.
However, “the drawdown authority does not constitute aid in and off itself, and the LAF has not been allocated $50 million in aid,” said Aram Nerguizian, senior associate with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, rounding up.
“What it does mean is that the president has instructed the U.S. government interagency to make excess defense items available to the LAF,” he added. “This is not aid in an account like [Foreign Military Financing]. Sections 552(c)(2) and 506(a)(1) of the Foreign Assistance Act just instructs the U.S. interagency to assess what excess items are available, to make such items available for transfer to the LAF, and only if the items are releasable and line with the requirements of the LAF and U.S. interests more broadly.
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Paul Crespo
Paul Crespo is the Managing Editor of American Defense News. A defense and national security expert, he served as a Marine Corps officer and as a military attaché with the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) at US embassies worldwide. Paul holds degrees from Georgetown, London, and Cambridge Universities. He is also CEO of SPECTRE Global Risk, a security advisory firm, and President of the Center for American Defense Studies, a national security think tank.
instructed to make excess defense items available……after gifting 85 Billion to the Taliban, I wonder how and why we have ANY excess defense items…….or does our military stockpile so much inventory that giving away all of that to a terrorist entity doesn’t even make a dent in what we have?
Maybe they should contact the Taliban. They have millions of dollars worth of Ameriacan weapons.
Government double speak at its best. It is not aid because it is a gift. Snow is black and coal is white cannot be too far in the offing.
NO it probably means Hunter will get a 1/4, buydung a half and lebanon the last quarter! the way that thieving, lying maggot works!
If our illegal not elected by the people federal government is doing it then there are two facts to follow the executive is pure evil, and the congressional majority is pure evil, anything they do is a lie and based upon evil Intent that threatens our republic, our government is pure scum.
Not just NO, BUT HADES NO !! as to giving money to any but Israel.
How much will go into Hunter’s back pocket?