PM: Defense must expand without excessive deficit

Benjamin Netanyahu
Benjamin Netanyahu

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel's defense spending had to rise, but without the deficit getting out of control.

The defense budget should be increased without increasing the deficit too much, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the fourteenth conference of the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism.

"Security of course depends on the economy, and we don't want to endanger it. We have to expand the defense budget, but responsibly, in such a way as will not lead to an uncontrolled rise in the deficit," Netanyahu said.

"Just as you can't go to the bank and say, 'I have an overdraft and I'm going to raise it without limit', because they'll close your account, or raise the interest rate you pay to levels you can't support. so we have to spend more on defense without raising the deficit too much. Therefore we have to find the balance required between an unavoidable increase in the defense budget and maintaining a responsible fiscal policy that will lead both to greater security and to continuation of the economic growth that has characterized Israel in the past decade."

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on September 11, 2014

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2013

Benjamin Netanyahu
Benjamin Netanyahu
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