Civil-Military Relations in Israel [Hardcover]

Yehuda Ben-Meir (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 1995

A small nation surrounded by often hostile states, Israel has kept a well-trained military force to defend its borders. This study discusses the alarming possibility of a military takeover of the Israeli government. The author explores the advancing presence of the military in Israeli politics.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The author, a researcher in an Israeli political-military research institute who was formerly associated with the government, takes the scholarly approach in discussing military roles in general and their appropriate place in contemporary Israeli society. Samuel Huntington's The Soldier and the State (1957) and Amos Perlmutter's Military and Politics in Israel (1969) serve as a research basis for the supplemental work done here by Ben-Meir, who employs a great number of personal interviews to bring this topic up-to-date. He notes with approval the necessary quality of civilian control of the military in a democracy. After presenting a very structured picture of both the Israeli government and its military, he finds that there are problems and that reforms are in order. Ben-Meir argues that there needs to be greater civilian control over Israeli strategic planning and an improved legal statement delineating the relationship between the legislative and the military areas of activity. Essential reading for both the sociological study of the military and the comparative study of Israeli defense.?Sanford R. Silverburg, Catawba Coll., Salisbury, N.C
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 235 pages
• Publisher: Columbia University Press (October 15, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0231096844
• ISBN-13: 978-0231096843
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,306,861 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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4.0 out of 5 stars The military poses absolutely no threat to Israeli democracy..., October 28, 2005

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This review is from: Civil-Military Relations in Israel (Hardcover)

As David Rodman has observed: Does the Israeli military exert too much influence over the government? Many Israeli academic experts, such as Yoram Peri, think so. Ben Meir, a deputy foreign minister in the early 1980s, takes a more optimistic view. He argues convincingly that the military poses absolutely no threat to Israeli democracy. It has never interfered in the state's electoral process, nor has it ever refused to carry out the orders of the civilian authorities. But he believes the military has too large a voice in national-security planning and foreign affairs. Also, the military-industrial complex has controlled state policy when it comes to selling arms abroad. This situation occasionally leads to occasional mishaps (such as arms sales to Guatemala and El Salvador, and the Iran\contra affair).

Ben Meir correctly sees that the military's influence over the government will remain strong so long as Israel is threatened, but he holds that the most glaring flaws in civil-military relations can be fixed now. To that end, he offers a number of sensible recommendations. First, the government should codify the chain of command at the highest level: the prime minister, defense minister, director general of the defense ministry, and chief of staff. Secondly, to increase civilian involvement in national security and foreign policy, the prime minister should create a staff of civilian experts to concentrate on these matters. Surprisingly, though Ben Meir notes the inadequate legislative and judicial control over the military, he does not propose any significant changes in these areas.