The Israel Defense Forces and the Finance Ministry will continue to spar well after wolves and lambs fulfill Isaiah's utopian vision and dwell together. This pointless tit-for-tat has become an annual tradition. The treasury officials have shown they are unwilling to think outside the box. They just use the same old mantra: "Cut the IDF's pension benefits." I have had it with that old chestnut. The Defense Ministry has signed off on some austerity measures, but it is going to take time. There is no magic bullet. Several months ago, when the Defense Ministry asked for more funding, it promised not come back for more. The Finance Ministry acquiesced and agreed to release some funds, but it provided the funding in a lump sum, saying it should cover any added expenses. That approach helps save money, but it is not always the right approach. On Wednesday, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon hinted that the defense establishment would need about NIS 2 billion ($580 million) for the 2014 fiscal year and another NIS 7 billion or NIS 8 billion (around $2 billion) in 2015. This demand makes sense. Anyone who has a better idea, who thinks they know where they can find the necessary funding without compromising essential initiatives and without breaking the law should stand up and say so. When all is said and done, there is only one constant demand that must be met, even though it may have lost its appeal overtime: the IDF's combat worthiness must top our nation's agenda. After the most recent supplemental budget was approved (totaling some NIS 2.75 billion or $800 million), the defense officials said this would suffice. But that pledge was made based on the false premise that the IDF could get more funding by selling real estate and other assets. But things did not work out this way. So what can we do now? Disband Iron Dome units? The Givati Brigade? The intelligence's signal intelligence unit, Unit 8200? Should we decommission submarines? The politicians who approved the supplemental funding knew it would fall short. But they chose to go ahead with it anyway. Because of various political constraints, the government prefers to throw a bone to the IDF every so often rather than provide it with the funds it needs up front. The Defense Ministry's budget is flawed too. The government must rethink the entire budgeting process. Defense expenditures should dovetail with projects that are run by other ministries. The Education Ministry and Defense Ministry should both fund the teaching of Arabic, physics and math in our schools. They should both dole out the money when a new lab is built. This would create outstanding students and benefit everyone. Unfortunately, this is a utopian vision and there is no one who is willing to go to battle over this. Even the deal that was based on the Brodet committee, under which the defense establishment would receive some NIS 100 billion ($29 billion) over 10 years in exchange for streamlining its operations, unraveled. Former Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi did not like the deal, but he thought it would at least allow the army to plan for the long haul. But not a year passed before the arrangement collapsed. The IDF needs the money. The Israeli public needs those funds. These budget matters should be taken seriously, not as if we were talking about some charity donation or acts of loving-kindness.
