Israel’s President, defence Minister and Ministry of defence Director General present the 2017 Israeli defence Prize
Yesterday evening (June 26, 2017) President of the State of Israel Reuven Rivlin and defence Minister Avigdor Liberman presented the Israel defence Prize, the most prestigious award in Israel’s defence establishment, together with defence Ministry Director General (res.) Udi Adam, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot and senior members of the security establishment and defence industries. At this 60th year of the ceremony, prizes were awarded for projects and activities that have greatly contributed to the security of the State of Israel and to maintaining its strength and qualitative edge on the battlefield, both in operational and technology aspects.
President Reuven Rivlin told the winners: “The Israeli public does not know how much it owes you, you chose to dedicate your creative powers to the state, not for your home, to wait with the exit, and in 2017 it is not self-evident.”
Minister of defence Avigdor Liberman: “You, the winners, are responsible for the Jewish mind, and all we have seen here the result of your work. If you do not know how to develop your relative advantage, you do not survive the wild competition that exists in the world and especially in our region.”
defence Ministry Director General, Maj. Gen. (Res.) Udi Adam: “You have proven again that even the skies are not the limit: all of the operational projects today “live and breathe” and successfully challenge the systems against each other every day and hour [after] hour.”
This year, two prizes were awarded for groundbreaking security projects and a commendation for an additional project:
One prize was awarded to the Arrow-3 Missile defence System project, a team comprised of Israel’s Missile defence Organization (IMDO) at the Ministry of defence, and a combination of defence industries – Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) the primary contractor, Rafael and IMI – and the Israel Air Force. The Arrow-3 interceptor capabilities enable longer range, higher altitude (exo-atmospheric) and more precise ballistic missile engagements. The combined interception capabilities of the Arrow-2 and Arrow-3 will significantly reduce the possibilities of ballistic missiles impacting the State of Israel.
A second prize will be awarded to a project developed and implemented by the Prime Minister’s Office and the Intelligence Division, which was made possible by daring, exceptional operational ability, combined with a highly impressive technological innovation. The project successfully tackles a wide variety of threats and its contribution to the security of the State of Israel is truly unique.
A commendation will be awarded to a project that was led and developed by the Prime Minister’s Office, the IDF and the Ministry of defence and implemented by a civilian entity. It has an operational contribution that isn’t enough for the award of the Israel Security Prize, but it demonstrates unconventional, exceptional thinking, which Israel’s defence establishment wants to encourage and nurture.
President of the State of Israel, Reuven Rivlin, said at the ceremony: “The Israeli public does not know how much it owes you, the winners. Those who live in our region know that we have to be more agile, sharper and more sophisticated in order to defeat those who want to harm us. You chose to dedicate your creative powers to the state. Not for your home, to wait with the exit, and in 2017 it is not self-evident. In this age, one who dedicates himself to his creativity, his initiatives, his dreams of Israel’s security deserves respect and respect, and above all, a great embrace from all the citizens of Israel. The power of the State of Israel was in the clear awareness of its leaders that we must always take one step before the enemy. Woe to us if it will only be in the fields of technology and military capabilities. The Israeli leadership must constantly ensure that we are not caught up in complacency. Because our thinking about our future is not petty. We need to make sure that we are careful about planning and strategic thinking. How we paint the future, how our great-grandchildren and grandchildren will live and what they will think when they read about us in the history books. ”
defence Minister Avigdor Liberman to the winners: “The main thing is the relative advantage, and our relative advantage is the Jewish brain, not the size of the state and not the size of the population. Your comparative advantage, you do not survive the wild competition that exists in the world and especially in our region. ”
defence Ministry Director General, Maj. Gen. (Res.) Udi Adam: “You, the recipients of the Israel defence Prize, are the right-hand for this supremacy, and you are the locomotives that draw the professional, creative and ground breaking thinking to the areas where the State of Israel is the world’s leading technological powers. Your work, most of it hidden and will remain so unknown for generations to come, but all of the workers who serve here, and the general public, are well aware of the enormous contribution to the operational supremacy of the IDF and the security forces, and once again you have proven that even the skies are not the limit.”
About the Arrow 3 Missile defence System:
The Arrow system is a key part of Israel’s multi-layered defence array, with the Arrow-3 interceptor constituting the uppermost layer, protecting against the threat of ballistic missiles. The Arrow-3 interceptor is a world-class missile that, together with the Arrow-2, expands the defence envelope provided to the State of Israel. The Arrow-3 interceptor capabilities enable longer range, higher altitude (exo-atmospheric) and more precise ballistic missile engagements. The combined interception capabilities of the Arrow-2 and Arrow-3 will significantly reduce the possibilities of ballistic missiles impacting the State of Israel.
The Arrow-3 missile defence system was developed by Israel’s Missile defence Organization (IMDO), together with the U.S. Missile defence Agency (MDA).
The primary contractor for the integration and development of the Arrow Weapon System is MLM of IAI, jointly with Elta a subsidiary of IAI. Boeing is partnered with MLM to develop and produce Arrow 3. Elbit, a subsidiary of Elisra, developed the BMC system. The target missile was developed by Rafael.
About the Israel defence Prize:
The concept of the Israel defence Prize was first conceived by Israel’s first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, as an expression for those making developments contributing to the security of the State of Israel. The prize was named after the late Eliyahu Golomb, commander of the Hagana organization. Up to now, 178 projects have been awarded (including two projects this year). Fifty-two people have won the prize twice and seven people have won more than twice.
Previous prizes have been awarded for: the Merkava Mark III Tank, the Iron Dome and Arrow missile defence systems, the Trophy active protection system of tanks and armored personnel carriers, Rafael’s family of Air-to-Air Missiles (starting with the 1960’s Shafrir through the 1990’s Python), the Uzi, the Galilee, the Kfir, the Gabriel Missile, the Popeye Missile, and more.
