Bank of Israel prepares for economic fallout of potential war with Iran
- Yuan Zhenyu
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E-mail Xinhua, August 12, 2012
Bank of Israel prepares for economic fallout of potential war with Iran
JERUSALEM, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) -- Bank of Israel (BOI) Governor Stanley Fischer said Israel's financial system is preparing for the economic repercussions of a military strike against Iran's nuclear facilities, local media reported on Sunday.
"The primary responsibility for each country is to maintain its security," Fischer was quoted by the Ynet news site as saying.
"Scenarios in which Israel faces an all-out war would be very difficult to deal with. We are preparing ourselves to face a real crisis," he added that such an attack would force the BOI to rethink its priorities.
"If there is a need to take more money and spend it on defense costs at such a situation, then that's simply what has to be done and we will have to pay for it," Fischer said.
Fischer also praised the recently-approved austerity plan, devised by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz, which includes tax hikes and budget cuts in order to curb the burgeoning 2012 deficit.
"Netanyahu and Steinitz are working in a measured way," he said. "Most of the taxes will be imposed on the relatively higher levels of society and much less on the poor and middle class."
Despite criticism from all over the political spectrum, said the plan is "measured."
"What is happening now is that we are acting responsibly, in order to prevent a crisis from occurring in the future," he said. "We must give credit to Netanyahu and Steinitz, who are doing something very few leaders around the world do, by taking care of problems they see on the horizon," he added.
Concluding that "the economy is in good condition, (but) not a great one," he added that "we are handling the crisis, and dealing with the crisis before an election." Enditem
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