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 Leaders of the Senate and House of Representatives Armed Services
committees released details of a slimmed-down defense authorization
bill for fiscal 2014 late on Monday, calling for a final vote on the
measure before Congress leaves for the year.
The bill includes $80 million in additional funding to address the
problem that caused a missile defense test flight failure in July,
and $30 million for design and development of a new, enhanced "kill
vehicle," the part of the rocket that is used to hit the target
missile and destroy it on impact.
In addition to added funding, the measure requires the Pentagon to
develop options and plans to improve the Ground-based Midcourse
Defense (GMD) system run by Boeing Co.
The compromise measure also calls for the Missile Defense Agency to
deploy another radar to protect the United States from long-range
missile threats from North Korea, and to ensure that other sensors
could be deployed on the Atlantic side of the United States to
defend against missile threats from Iran.
It earmarked $20 million to fund efforts under way to evaluate a
possible additional U.S. interceptor site.
The measure authorizes $173 million in added funding for
U.S.-Israeli cooperative missile defense programs, including nearly
$34 million to improve the Arrow weapon system and $22 million for
work on developing an upper-tier interceptor. Boeing has worked with
Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) on the Arrow II and Arrow 3
interceptors.
It also includes $117.2 million for development of the David's Sling
short-range ballistic missile defense system, which is being
developed jointly by Israel's state-owned Rafael Advanced Defence
Systems Ltd and Raytheon Co, one of the largest U.S. arms makers.
A new interceptor being developed by Israel and the United States to
counter missiles that are held by Syria and Lebanon's Hezbollah
guerillas passed a second live trial last month, according to a
summary released by the committees.
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The measure also backed President Barack Obama's request of $220
million for Israel to buy additional Iron Dome short-range
interceptors and batteries, and added $15 million to establish a
U.S. co-production capability for Iron Dome parts.
Raytheon has a joint marketing agreement with Israeli state-owned
manufacturer Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd for the Iron Dome
system.
In addition, the measure requires a report on U.S.-Israeli missile
defense cooperation, and better reporting by the Missile Defense
Agency on the full cost of operating and maintaining missile defense
systems.
The measure also explicitly bans the use of fiscal 2014 funds to
integrate Chinese missile defense systems into U.S. missile defense
systems, a move aimed at putting further pressure on Turkey to
change its mind about choosing a Chinese system over those proposed
by U.S. and European firms.
U.S. and NATO officials have said the Chinese system could not work
together with existing U.S. and NATO systems.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal-Esa; editing by Lisa Shumaker)
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