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December 25, 1998/ 6 Tevet 5759, Vol. 51, No. 14
Looking toward new battlefields
Horev contends technology key to Israel's future
LOU HIRSH
Managing Editor
Gen. Amos Horev
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In the 1940s, he fought in military battles that helped Israel gain its independence as a nation. Today, at age 74, retired Israeli Gen. Amos Horev is focused more on contests being fought not on battlefields but in high-tech laboratories.
The outcome of the competition, he says, will play a pivotal role in the Jewish state's future.
Horev, who visited the Valley recently with wife, Shoshana, as part of a cross-country tour, is currently deputy chairman of the international board of governors of the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. The Haifa-based medical and science institute is Israel's equivalent of the American MIT.
In recent years, Technion has been the center of innovative research into computer chips and their applications. Earlier this year, Technion and American researchers made headlines with breakthroughs in the development of laboratory-produced human tissue, which could have a profound impact on organ replacement and other areas of medicine.
But with circumstances dictating that Israel remain at a constant state of readiness to do battle with its adversaries, military research remains a top priority for Technion. Researchers there helped develop the Patriot missile technology that was used in the 1991 Persian Gulf War, and Technion scientists are currently involved in the development of the Arrow anti-missile system, a project jointly funded by the United States and Israel.
In fact, there has long been a close relationship between Israel's scientific and defense establishments. Horev himself served as president of Technion from 1973 to 1982, after leaving the military, and has also served in several science-related positions in the Israeli government. Many of the students now at Technion, Horev points out, are men and women in their early to mid-20s, who have recently completed mandatory military service and have gained a sense of discipline about their studies that is not found among college students in other countries.
"They come here ready to learn, and they have a sense of the importance of defending their country," says Horev.
Horev says that whatever the outcome of recent peace discussions, an investment in defense and technology will remain crucial for Israel.
He notes that the peace agreements do not make it possible for Israel to scale back on defense spending the way the United States did after the end of the Cold War. Rather, "the more risks Israel is willing to take on, the more it will need a strong defense," says Horev, referring to the Wye accords.
In spite of his optimism about Israel's technological future, the Jerusalem native says years of conflict have taught Israelis not to expect the kind of peace that Americans now take for granted. He says quiet co-existence with its foes may be the best that Israel can hope for when all is said and done.
"We can expect to cooperate and co-exist with our neighbors," says Horev. "I don't think anybody expects a complete peace anytime soon."
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