Moshe Arens (27 December 1925 – 7 January 2019) was an Israeli
aeronautical
Aeronautics is the science or art involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of air flight–capable machines, and the techniques of operating aircraft and rockets within the atmosphere. The British Royal Aeronautical Society identifies ...
engineer, researcher, diplomat and
Likud
Likud ( he, הַלִּיכּוּד, HaLikud, The Consolidation), officially known as Likud – National Liberal Movement, is a major centre-right to right-wing political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin and Ariel S ...
politician. A member of the
Knesset
The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (wit ...
between 1973 and 1992 and again from 1999 until 2003, he served as
Minister of Defense
A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in s ...
three times and once as
Minister of Foreign Affairs
A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...
. Arens also served as the
Israeli ambassador to the U.S. and was a professor at the
Technion in
Haifa
Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...
.
Early life and education
Arens was born in
Kaunas
Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Traka ...
,
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
, to a
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
family. His father was an industrialist and his mother was a dentist. When he was a year old, his family moved to
Riga
Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the ...
,
Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
. where he attended elementary school. In 1939, Arens and his family emigrated to the United States, where his father had business interests. The family settled in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, where Arens attended
George Washington High School.
As a youth, Arens was a leader in the
Betar
The Betar Movement ( he, תנועת בית"ר), also spelled Beitar (), is a Revisionist Zionist youth movement founded in 1923 in Riga, Latvia, by Vladimir (Ze'ev) Jabotinsky. Chapters sprang up across Europe, even during World War II. After ...
youth movement. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, Arens served in the
as a
technical sergeant
Technical sergeant is the name of two current and two former enlisted ranks in the United States Armed Forces, as well as in the U.S. Civil Air Patrol. Outside the United States, it is used only by the Philippine Army, Philippine Air Force and the ...
. Following the
Israeli Declaration of Independence
The Israeli Declaration of Independence, formally the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel ( he, הכרזה על הקמת מדינת ישראל), was proclaimed on 14 May 1948 ( 5 Iyar 5708) by David Ben-Gurion, the Executiv ...
in 1948, Arens
immigrated to the new State of Israel and joined the
Irgun
Irgun • Etzel
, image = Irgun.svg , image_size = 200px
, caption = Irgun emblem. The map shows both Mandatory Palestine and the Emirate of Transjordan, which the Irgun claimed in its entirety for a future Jewish state. The acronym "Etzel" i ...
, despite the opposition of his father. He was sent to North Africa (mostly
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to A ...
and
Algeria
)
, image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Algiers
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, relig ...
) and Europe to help local Jewish communities establish self-defense groups. In March 1949, he returned to Israel, and became a founding member of the
Herut
Herut ( he, חֵרוּת, ''Freedom'') was the major conservative nationalist political party in Israel from 1948 until its formal merger into Likud in 1988. It was an adherent of Revisionist Zionism.
History
Herut was founded by Menachem Begin ...
party, which had grown out of the Irgun. He worked as an engineer for an American company that designed water systems for
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
.
In 1951, he returned to the United States, and studied engineering at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of th ...
and aeronautical engineering at the
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
where he was a student of
Qian Xuesen
Qian Xuesen, or Hsue-Shen Tsien (; 11 December 1911 – 31 October 2009), was a Chinese mathematician, cyberneticist, aerospace engineer, and physicist who made significant contributions to the field of aerodynamics and established engineering ...
, then worked for a time in the aircraft industry.
[Moshe Arens: Particulars]
Knesset website
/ref>
Academic and research career
In 1957, Arens became professor of aeronautics at the Technion, serving in this position until 1962. After retiring from the government, he devoted himself to researching and commemorating the story of the Jewish Military Union
Żydowski Związek Wojskowy (ŻZW, Polish for ''Jewish Military Union,'' yi, יידישע מיליטערישע פֿאראייניקונג) was an underground resistance organization operating during World War II in the area of the Warsaw Gh ...
(ŻZW), which fought alongside the better known Jewish Combat Organization
The Jewish Combat Organization ( pl, Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa, ŻOB; yi, ''Yidishe Kamf Organizatsie''; often translated to English as the Jewish Fighting Organization) was a World War II resistance movement in occupied Poland, which wa ...
(ŻOB) in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Arens is the author of a number of articles on the revolt as well as a book, ''Flags over the Warsaw Ghetto'', which has been published in Hebrew, Polish and English.
Arens was chairman of the International Board of Governors of Ariel University Center of Samaria.[ He was also a columnist for ]Haaretz
''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner ...
newspaper.
Business career
From 1962 until 1971, Arens served as Deputy Director General at Israel Aircraft Industries
Israel Aerospace Industries (Hebrew language, Hebrew: התעשייה האווירית לישראל ''ha-ta'asiya ha-avirit le-yisra'el'') or IAI (תע"א) is Israel's major aerospace and aviation manufacturer, producing aerial and astronautic sy ...
, where he oversaw major development projects, including the Kfir fighter jet project.
Political career
After the Yom Kippur War
The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was an armed conflict fought from October 6 to 25, 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by E ...
, Arens entered politics and was elected to the Knesset
The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (wit ...
as a member of Likud in the 1973 elections. After being re-elected in 1977
Events January
* January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democrat ...
, he became chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee
The Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee ( he, ועדת חוץ וביטחון) is a permanent Knesset committee which oversees key Foreign and Defense issues of the State of Israel, including the drafting of legislation, supervision over relat ...
. He voted against the Camp David Accords
The Camp David Accords were a pair of political agreements signed by Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin on 17 September 1978, following twelve days of secret negotiations at Camp David, the country retrea ...
and the Egypt–Israel peace treaty
The Egypt–Israel peace treaty ( ar, معاهدة السلام المصرية الإسرائيلية, Mu`āhadat as-Salām al-Misrīyah al-'Isrā'īlīyah; he, הסכם השלום בין ישראל למצרים, ''Heskem HaShalom Bein Yisrael ...
. In 1980, Prime Minister Menachem Begin
Menachem Begin ( ''Menaḥem Begin'' (); pl, Menachem Begin (Polish documents, 1931–1937); ''Menakhem Volfovich Begin''; 16 August 1913 – 9 March 1992) was an Israeli politician, founder of Likud and the sixth Prime Minister of Israel. ...
offered Arens the post of Minister of Defense, but he turned it down due to his disagreement over the terms of the Egypt–Israel Peace Treaty. Arens did not oppose peace with Egypt, but was opposed to certain aspects of the treaty, and thus did not want to have to oversee Israel's evacuation from the Sinai.[
He was re-elected again in 1981, but resigned from the Knesset on 19 January 1982 when appointed ]ambassador to the United States
The following table lists ambassadors to the United States, sorted by the representative country or organization.
See also
*Ambassadors of the United States
Ambassadors of the United States are persons nominated by the president to serve ...
. At this point, he brought his young protégé, Benjamin Netanyahu
Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu (; ; born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician who served as the ninth prime minister of Israel from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2009 to 2021. He is currently serving as Leader of the Opposition and Chairman of ...
, then 32, to work for him in Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
. He returned to Israel in February 1983 after being appointed Minister of Defense
A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in s ...
, replacing Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon (; ; ; also known by his diminutive Arik, , born Ariel Scheinermann, ; 26 February 1928 – 11 January 2014) was an Israeli general and politician who served as the 11th Prime Minister of Israel from March 2001 until April 2006.
S ...
, who had been forced out of office following the Kahan Commission's report on the Sabra and Shatila massacre
The Sabra and Shatila massacre (also known as the Sabra and Chatila massacre) was the killing of between 460 and 3,500 civilians, mostly Palestinians and Lebanese Shiites, by the militia of the Lebanese Forces, a Maronite Christian Lebanese ...
. He was re-elected in 1984
Events
January
* January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888.
* January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
, but was only appointed Minister without Portfolio
A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister who does not head a particular ministry. The sinecure is particularly common in countries ruled by coalition governments and a cabinet ...
. After another re-election in 1988 he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs (with Netanyahu his deputy), and in 1990 returned to the Defense portfolio. He was Defence Minister when Hizbullah leader Sheikh Abbas al-Musawi
Abbas al-Musawi (; ar, عباس الموسوي; 26 October 1952 – 16 February 1992) was an influential Lebanese Shia cleric, co-founder and Secretary General of Hezbollah. He was killed by the Israel Defense Forces in 1992.
Early life ...
was assassinated, 16 February 1992; al-Musawi's wife, son and four others were killed in the air strike.
After Likud lost the 1992 elections, Arens retired from politics. He returned in 1999
''In 1999'' is a 1912 one-act comedic short play by William C. deMille, originally produced by Jesse L. Lasky, that was popular upon its release. Its gags are based on a future where gender roles are reversed.
Production
The piece debuted at th ...
, however, to challenge Netanyahu for the Likud leadership. Although he won only 18% of the vote, Netanyahu appointed him Minister of Defense, replacing Yitzhak Mordechai
Yitzhak "Itzik" Mordechai ( he, יצחק מרדכי, born 22 November 1944) is an Israeli former general and politician. He served as a member of the Knesset between 1996 and 2001, and as Minister of Defense and Minister of Transport. He retire ...
, who had left Likud to establish the Centre Party. Although Arens returned to the Knesset after the 1999 elections, Likud lost the elections and he left the cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filin ...
. He lost his seat for the final time in 2003
File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A ...
.
Arens questioned the wisdom of Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Israeli procurement
Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Israeli procurement is the result of an agreement for the government of Israel to procure the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II for the Israeli Air Force as the F-35I "Adir". The first nine F-35s became opera ...
, given the neglected state of Israeli ground forces. In an article for Fathom Journal, Arens stated that he was a critic of unilateral withdrawal from the West Bank
The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
and Gaza, accusing its proponents of suffering from "unilateral withdrawal syndrome".
Personal life
While living in the United States, Arens married Muriel F. Eisenberg from New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, and she moved to Israel with him. The couple had four children, two boys and two girls; Yigal, Aliza, Raanan, and Ruth.[ Arens died on 7 January 2019 at the age of 93.
]
Published works
*''Optimum staging of cruising aircraft''. Haifa: Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Department of Aeronautical Engineering, 1959.
*''Some requirements for the efficient attainment of range by air-borne vehicles''. Haifa: Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Department of Aeronautical Engineering, 1959.
*''A hypersonic ramjet using a normal detonation wave''. Jerusalem: Weizmann Science Press of Israel, 1960.
*''Moshe Arens, Statesman and Scientist Speaks Out''. (With Merill Simon) New York: Dean Books, 1988.
*''Broken covenant: American foreign policy and the crisis between the U.S. and Israel''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1995.
*''Flags Over the Warsaw Ghetto: The Untold Story of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising''. Jerusalem: Gefen, 2011.
*''In Defense of Israel: A Memoir of a Political Life''. Washington DC: Brookings, 2018.
Awards and recognition
In 1971, Arens won the Israel Defense Prize. In 2016, Nefesh B'Nefesh
Nefesh B'Nefesh ( he, נפש בנפש, lit=Soul to soul), or Jewish Souls United, a nonprofit organization, promotes, encourages and facilitates aliyah ( Jewish immigration to Israel) from the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. ...
awarded him the Bonei Zion Prize
The Sylvan Adams Bonei Zion Prize ( he, פרס בוני ציון; Translation: ''Builders of Zion Prize'') is awarded annually by the Nefesh B'Nefesh organization to formally recognize the achievements of outstanding Anglo immigrants and their con ...
.Six immigrants to Israel awarded the Bonei Zion Prize
/ref>
References
Further reading
*''Moshe Arens, statesman and scientist, speaks out'', Merrill Simon,with a foreword by Daniel K. Inouye ; edited by Judith Featherman. Middle Island, N.Y.: Dean Books, 1988.
External links
*
Charlie Rose – Moshe Arens
Moshe Arens
Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arens, Moshe
1925 births
2019 deaths
Lithuanian Jews
Diplomats from Kaunas
Zionists
Lithuanian emigrants to the United States
Jewish American scientists
MIT School of Engineering alumni
California Institute of Technology alumni
American emigrants to Israel
American people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent
United States Army personnel of World War II
Betar members
Irgun members
Israeli Jews
Israeli educators
Ariel University
Technion – Israel Institute of Technology faculty
Israel Defense Prize recipients
Ambassadors of Israel to the United States
Likud politicians
Ministers of Defense of Israel
Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Israel
Members of the 8th Knesset (1974–1977)
Members of the 9th Knesset (1977–1981)
Members of the 10th Knesset (1981–1984)
Members of the 11th Knesset (1984–1988)
Members of the 12th Knesset (1988–1992)
Members of the 15th Knesset (1999–2003)
Bonei Zion Prize recipients
United States Army Corps of Engineers personnel
Moskowitz Prize for Zionism laureates
Israeli writers
Engineers from Kaunas
United States Army soldiers
21st-century American Jews