Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday rejected a report that Jerusalem is pursuing a 20-year U.S. security-aid package, saying his “direction is the exact opposite” and adding that “it’s time to ensure that Israel is independent,” with an announcement expected “very soon.” In an interview on Australian journalist Erin Molan’s podcast, Netanyahu addressed the report published minutes earlier and told Molan to “follow what I say, not what is put forward in some leaks that are not true,” framing his policy as a shift toward “greater independence.”
Netanyahu tied the stance to his first term as prime minister, recalling that in 1996, he told Congress Israel would phase out economic aid to build a “high-tech, free-market capitalist economy.” He said he now wants Israel’s arms industry to be “as independent as possible.” Pressed on whether it is time to cut military aid entirely, he replied: “It’s time to ensure that Israel is independent.”
He noted U.S. support for Israel is a “tiny, tiny, tiny fraction” of what Washington has spent elsewhere in the Middle East and emphasized that roughly 80 percent of assistance is spent in the United States on American-made systems. The comments came as Israeli and U.S. officials continue quiet, preliminary contacts over the next security framework ahead of the current MOU’s 2028 expiration. The report said Israeli and U.S. officials have discussed a 20-year framework with “America First” elements — including steering funds into joint R&D in defense tech, AI, and the “Golden Dome” initiative — to appeal to the Trump administration as talks ramp up. (Read More)
He noted U.S. support for Israel is a “tiny, tiny, tiny fraction” of what Washington has spent elsewhere in the Middle East and emphasized that roughly 80 percent of assistance is spent in the United States on American-made systems. The comments came as Israeli and U.S. officials continue quiet, preliminary contacts over the next security framework ahead of the current MOU’s 2028 expiration. The report said Israeli and U.S. officials have discussed a 20-year framework with “America First” elements — including steering funds into joint R&D in defense tech, AI, and the “Golden Dome” initiative — to appeal to the Trump administration as talks ramp up. (Read More)
