PM Netanyahu to Appoint Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Yaakov Amidror as National Security Council Chairman

Dr. Aaron Lerner
IMRA
09 March '11

[Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA: Amidror blasted a critic from Haaretz who asserted that since Amidror was religious that he could not provide the 24/7 coverage his job requires as he would be out of touch during the Sabbath. Amidror noted that he faithfully fulfilled 24/7 a long string of roles in the IDF and that it was offensive and obnoxious to claim that Sabbath observing Jews had no place at the top.]

PM Netanyahu to Appoint Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Yaakov Amidror as National Security Council Chairman
(Communicated by the Prime Minister's Media Adviser)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today (Wednesday), 9.3.11, decided to appoint Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Yaakov Amidror as Chairman of the National Security Council. He will take office after an orderly transition in coordination with outgoing NSC Chairman Dr. Uzi Arad.

Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Amidror began his career in the IDF, in 1967, as a paratrooper. He later filled a series of posts including Director of the Intelligence Corps Research and Assessment Division, Military Secretary to the Defense Minister and Commander of the IDF Military Colleges.


(For those unfamiliar with Gen. Amidror, here is a short piece from when he recently spoke to Hadar Israel YH   www.hadar-israel.org Not relying on foreign forces to defend Israel was a key principle of Ben Gurion and the state's founders, and it is still as true today, according to Mag. General (res.) Yaakov Amidror, former Director of the Israel Defense Force's Research Division. Ultimately Israel must defend itself by itself. Amidror says that international troops are at best ineffective and potentially dangerous. UNIFIL has never stopped Hizbullah forces from building an illegal arsenal of tens of thousands of missiles and rockets aimed at Israel. Deploying international troops will only narrow Israel's options and provide an umbrella under which terrorists can build their capability to strike. Exclusive Hadar Israel video recorded at Menachem Begin Heritage Center, Jerusalem December 26, 2010.)

After his discharge from the IDF, he continued to contribute to state security in a variety of roles including as a member of the Meridor Committee on formulating Israel's security doctrine and chairman of the team appointed by the Chief-of-Staff to inquire into intelligence operations during the Second Lebanon War. He has recently served as Vice President of the Lander Institute in Jerusalem.

Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Amidror has published two books in the field of intelligence and security and numerous articles in both professional journals and the press.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu noted that Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Amidror has not hesitated to express his professional opinions and said that he possesses vast military, strategic and security knowledge and experience. "He will continue to lead the NSC as a main element in determining the national security policy of the State of Israel," the Prime Minister said.

Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Amidror's appointment will be submitted for Cabinet approval pending an evaluation by the Appointments Committee chaired by the Civil Service Commissioner.

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A Salute to Uzi Arad

David M. Weinberg
A Citadel Defending Zion
06 March '11

http://davidmweinberg.com/2011/03/06/a-salute-to-uzi-arad/

This morning, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and the Israeli cabinet will give outgoing National Security Council chairman Uzi Arad a formal send-off. The tribute will be well-deserved.

Arad is a strongly principled yet eminently pragmatic expert on foreign, diplomatic and defense policy who provided brainpower to the country’s leaders for almost 40 years.

He spent more than 20 years in the Mossad, culminating in the post of director of intelligence. It is well-recognized that he was one of the Mossad’s most effective intelligence officers. Andy Marshall, long-time director of the Pentagon’s Office of Net Assessment, has called Arad a top global defense strategist.

Arad was a loyal adviser to Netanyahu in the latter’s first term as prime minister, and then founded the celebrated Herzliya Conference on the Balance of Israel’s National Security. The Herzliya Conference became prestigious and influential because of Arad. He devised the unique format, oversaw the writing of position papers, invited the many top-tier foreign experts, and drew in the country’s leaders.

This time around, Arad served his prime minister in multiple capacities: as a top foreign policy adviser, a trusted diplomatic envoy and as NSC manager.

Arad practiced responsible statecraft. He was principled but not rigidly ideological on key matters such as the Jerusalem-Washington relationship. More importantly, he did not give in to the rash demands of foreign leaders and the Left for “new Israeli diplomatic initiatives” every two months. In an age when diplomatic and military adventures are costly, Arad would say: Maneuver with prudence and calibrate your moves with caution.

ARAD ASSEMBLED the country’s first real interagency National Security Council, with a staff in the Prime Minister’s Office of 60 people, 25 percent of whom are former officers and the rest academics and diplomats.

William Quandt's Embarrassing Memo

Daniel Pipes
danielpipes.org
24 May '10


While working on documents at the Carter Center, a researcher from the Menachem Begin Heritage Center came across a declassified action memorandum from William Quandt, Middle East specialist on the National Security Council, to his boss, Zbigniew Brzezinski. (Click here for the document in full.) Dated May 18, 1977, it was written just one day after Begin's breakthrough victory over Labor, the first time any other party had beaten Labor since the State of Israel had been founded 29 years earlier.

The memo makes for deliciously instructive reading. Count the mistakes in Quandt's opening analysis:

Much of our strategy toward the Arab-Israeli conflict has been predicated on the assumption that a strong and moderate Israeli government would at some point be able to make difficult decisions on territory and on the Palestinians. Now we face the prospect of a very weak coalition, a prolonged period of uncertainty, and an Israeli leadership which may be significantly more assertive in its policies concerning the West Bank, Palestinians, settlements, and nuclear weapons.

The Arabs will no doubt read the Israeli election results as signifying an end to the chance of getting to Geneva this year, and possibly the end of any hope for a political settlement, and we may see them begin to take out insurance by patching up quarrels with the Soviets, digging in their heels on peace terms , and acting more belligerently on oil prices.

In fact, Begin's government made the difficult decisions Labor had not taken, his coalition endured, the Egyptians became more forthcoming, their rift from the Soviets deepened, and oil prices were not affected (until the fall of the shah shot them up).

(Read full post)

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