The Defense Department has told Congress it intends to buy about $10 million worth of spare parts for the Lebanese military, said Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman.
The equipment would only be given to the Lebanese military if they assert control over the entire country and “reduce Hezbollah’s operating space,” he told reporters Friday.
None of the money for Lebanon is earmarked for weapons, Whitman said.
The Defense Department has the authority to allocate up to $200 million annually to help foreign militaries fight the war on terror under provisions of the National Defense Authorization Act.
Other countries slated to receive such funding include Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan, which is expected to receive $27 million alone in military aid, Whitman said.
While the funding can go toward training, none of the money for Lebanon is allocated for training the Lebanese military, Whitman said.
“We’re not talking about going into Lebanon at this point in time and training anybody, what we’re talking about now is using the authorities to purchase some of the spare parts that should we go forward and want to implement this program, we would be able to do because we will have gone — taken the necessary steps to have them available,” he said.
