Last week, U.S. Senator David Perdue (R-GA), along with Senators Jon Tester (D-MT) and Chris Coons (D-DE) introduced S. Res. 383, bipartisan legislation to recognize the economic accomplishments of the U.S.-Israel economic partnership and promote cooperation on future agreements to enhance technology across a variety of sectors.
The U.S.-Israel Free Trade Agreement was signed in 1985 by then President Ronald Reagan after being approved in Congress by a 422-0 vote in the House and by a voice vote in the Senate. The agreement was actually the first FTA entered into by the United States. Goods and services trade with Israel totalled $46 billion in 2013.
“The U.S.-Israel strategic alliance helped pave the way for our nations to develop vital economic ties,” said Senator Perdue. “Israel is a hub for innovation, and together our technology sectors have created jobs and encouraged innovation across the economic spectrum. We must continue working with Prime Minister Netanyahu to explore new opportunities for collaboration to grow economic sectors, increase cybersecurity, and advance medical research.”
The resolution proposal comes at an intense time for U.S.-Israeli relations. Vice President Joe Biden is in Israel this week amid news than Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cancelled an upcoming trip to Washington D.C. Early reports were that the move by Netanyahu represented a snub of the Obama administration as continuing disagreement over the Iranian nuclear deal. Follow-up reports have seemed to indicate that cancellation was the result of a legitimate scheduling issue but the media’s immediate reaction shows how far relations may have fallen.
Additionally, despite the bill’s bi-partisan nature, there is considerable worry that Democrats’ support for Israel is fading. In a survey commissioned by the Jewish National Fund, pollster Frank Luntz found that nearly half of Democrats view Israel as a racist country. Less than half of Democrats believe Israel wants peace with its neighbors. Almost one-third of Democrats are less likely to vote for a candidate that supports Israel and nearly half are more likely to vote for someone critical of Israel. On the economic front, nearly one-third of Democrats support the BDS movement (boycott, divest and sanctions) against Israel.
EJ Kimball, Executive Director of the Israel Allies Foundation, praised the Senators for their work and the goal of the resolution. “The Israel Allies Foundation is very thankful to Senators Perdue, Tester, and Coons for their sponsorship of Senate Resolution 383, America’s economic ties with Israel are incredibly valuable: U.S. exports to Israel sustain over 250,000 high paying American jobs, and Israel’s investment in America is larger than investment from China, India, or Russia. Yet ties can be deepened, and the Israel Allies Foundation will work with Senators Perdue, Tester, and Coons as their leadership paves the way for even more American jobs through deeper economic engagement with Israel.”
Specifically, S. Res. 383 seeks to: (1) affirm the robustness of the economic relationship; (2) recognize that science and technology innovation present new frontiers for economic cooperation; (3) encourage the Administration to expand and regularize existing forums of economic dialogue with Israel; and (4) support the exploration of new agreements, including in the fields of energy, water, agriculture, medicine, neurotechnology and cybersecurity.
Yesterday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved the resolution unanimously. It will now go before the full Senate for consideration.
