From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, July 8, 2020
IDF cancels major drill due to budget shortfall
The Israeli military announces it is canceling a major exercise planned for September, citing insufficient funding amid an ongoing row with the Finance Ministry over the defense budget.
The drill was meant to test the Israel Defense Forces’ ability to move rapidly from routine to wartime operations in the event of a massive multi-front scenario. Thousands of reservists were meant to take part.
“The routine-to-emergency transition exercise that was planned for September will be canceled. That is what IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi decided today as part of a prioritization process of IDF missions for 2020, in light of shortages in the budget, which are currently being discussed,” the military says.
The IDF has effectively been operating without a formal budget since the start of 2020 as there was no government to approve a new one. Instead, each month is was allocated one-twelfth of its 2019 annual budget, which the IDF believed to be insufficient for its multi-year Momentum Plan to revamp itself.
The military is currently negotiating a new budget with the Finance Ministry.
— Judah Ari Gross
The Times of Israel Community.