Now Israel is the region's superpower, and where it once looked to the United States not just for diplomatic support but also for military rescue, now Israel can thumb its nose at Washington and go its own way.
Israel is a major regional power, but in a protracted war they would need to be resupplied by the US. Of course Israel's wars have tended to be short, or low intensity (like the current battles against the PLO and Hamas, or like the exchange of artilary with Hezbolah or before a previous short intense war with Egypt)
Israel can field 19 divisions of ground troops, by some counts; the United States boasts 13 divisions worldwide and would need weeks to move any significant military force into the region.
That is misleading Israel may have 19 divisions but that figure would have to include divisions that would be filled out by reservists. Also their divisions may be smaller. I'm not sure that they are but American divisions are very large compared to those of some other countries.
srael's air force, which flies souped-up U.S. F-15 and F-16 fighters, can generate nearly 3,000 sorties, or combat missions, per day. The United States can sustain about 1,600 sorties a day.
The US air force is begger and can sustain more sorties then Israel's. Of course Israel's is all in the Middle East so I would not be surprised to find out that within the region (even if you count the forces involved in Afghanistan as being in the region) that Israel had could produce more sorties.
In addition to the US air force the US navy has more planes then all but a few airforces, and the Marines have an air wing.
"We have created an 800-pound gorilla," said Kenneth Brower, an independent military consultant in Washington, assessing decades of U.S. military aid to Israel.
I agree with that. Israel is a major regional power. They can't project that power world wide but none of the local countries' governments wants to go to war against that power.
Tim |
