(Jerusalem Post) Liat Collins - According to a special report by Yediot Ahronot's Eitan Amit, last year Israel's contribution to the upkeep of UN forces in Sierra Leone amounted to nearly $2m. Keeping peace in the Congo came with a $2.5m. price tag for Israel, while East Timor cost Israel just $1m. In 2003 Israel paid $8.4m. for UN peace-keeping efforts, and that is only half the story. Israel's part of the UN's ongoing annual budget for 2004-2005 is $7.4m. for each year. Given that in an average year, the UN General Assembly passes some 17 or 18 openly anti-Israel motions, it turns out that Israel is, in effect, "paying" close to $1m. per motion. Among the 22 countries that are members of both the Arab League and the UN, only oil-rich Saudi Arabia pays more than Israel. Israel pays three times as much as oil producers Iran and Kuwait, four times as much as Egypt, and 12 times as much as Syria.
2004-02-06 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive