It’s time to complete Israel’s War of Independence.
A cynic would say that American military aid to Israel is but a government subsidy to American arms’ manufacturers. One need not be a cynic to see the truth in this. One surely need not view American military aid to Israel through any lens other than friendship and gratitude. Without America’s massive supply of munitions to Israel, it could not wage its war against Hamas.
This does raise the question, however, of why Israel needs to rely on the US for these munitions. The old answer was economic: Israel could not afford them and, out of friendship, the US provided them. The friendship has not changed, but the economics have. Israel is strong enough economically to produce its own weapons. But why should it, if the US will provide them?
The answer is twofold.
First, the capacity of America’s weapons factories is limited. They must be able to meet the needs of many countries at once. First and foremost, of course, of the US; but also of allies. When, and how many, American allies will need American weapons is unpredictable. Two years ago, no one would have predicted that American military capacity must meet the needs of a massive war in Ukraine against Russia, and of a massive war in Israel against, in effect, Iran. With all the good will in the world, the US cannot necessarily supply weaponry to every ally, on the scale needed, all the time.
Second, the US and Israel do not always share strategic perspectives. Right now, Israel is bent on eradicating Hamas. The US, however, seems more and more to be leaning against ending the current Israeli operation in Gaza and pushing harder for the establishment of Palestinian state on the basis of Palestinian leadership — which wants Israel dead. There is no way Israel can pursue its own foreign policy if it depends on the vision of whoever happens to occupy the White House. This is but another way of saying that there is no way Israel can guarantee its very survival if it cannot produce its own weaponry.
No doubt, given the long history of comity between the US and Israel, given their strong mutual adherence to democratic values and given the countless personal ties between American and Israeli leaders and citizens, Israel and the US will continue to bear a common strategic vision. But it is inevitable that there will also be differences. The measure of these differences will also vary radically due to Israel’s small size and America’s long distance from Israel’s enemies.
Israel’s greatest error was made decades ago when it forswore the production of its own fighter aircraft, due to costs. Right now, Israel at the very least, needs to produce its own bombs and other munitions. Nixon commanded an airlift. It saved Israel in 1973. Biden commanded munitions deliveries. It’s critical for Israel’s war against Hamas in 2024. But there won’t necessarily always be a Nixon or a Biden in the White House. Israel needs to take its own military future into its own hands — in order to survive.
Copyright © 2024 by the Intermountain Jewish News
