Noam Chomsky, interviewed by Assaf Kfoury on January 31 for the Beirut daily as-Safir, on why the relationship between Israel and the US is what it is:
By now Israel is virtually an offshore US military base and intelligence centre”¦
Israel is also a valued high-tech centre, as illustrated by the increase of investment in Israel by leading US high-tech firms: Intel, Microsoft, etc.… In military industry, relations are so intimate that one of the leading Israeli military producers, Rafael, plans to move most of its development and manufacturing operations to the US – to provide the arms more efficiently to the IDF.… And Israel performs many other services to state and corporate power.
In contrast, Palestinians offer nothing to US power centres.… They are weak, impoverished, and defenceless.… Accordingly, they have no rights, by elementary principles of statecraft.… In fact they have negative rights, since their plight stirs up “the Arab street.”… Enhancing Israeli power at the expense of Palestinians therefore makes sense.