Israel's financial captains were cautiously optimistic Monday night, saying that several amendments to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz's budget bill may lift the threat of a looming political crisis.
The two met with Defense Minister Ehud Barak in an extended session that lasted well into the night, ending only at 3:00 am. The marathon discussions yielded results however. Not only will no cuts be made to the defense budget, it stands to enjoy an increase of several billion shekels.
The ministers also agreed to maintain the principles recommended by the Brodet Committee, which advocated a perennial increase for the defense budget. Barak's office has rejected claims that more spending on defense would harm the economy.
Furthermore, Netanyahu and Steinitz also agreed to expand the deficit target to 2.95%.
