Congress Weighs $3.8 Billion Israel Aid Phaseout for Deeper Defense Partnership
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Aug 5
Congress Weighs $3.8 Billion Israel Aid Phaseout for Deeper Defense Partnership
2 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 5
Summary
House and Senate lawmakers have inserted language into the annual defense policy bill to replace long-running military aid to Israel with a legally mandated defense-industrial and technology partnership.
The shift reflects sharply weakening U.S. political support for direct military funding, even as the proposal would deepen joint work on intelligence, missile defense, weapons development and industrial cooperation.
Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are backing the change, arguing it would turn the relationship from donor-recipient ties into a strategic partnership that also benefits U.S. defense innovation.
Critics in Congress warn that binding the two militaries and defense sectors more tightly could blur accountability lines with the Pentagon and create commitments that would be hard to reverse.