US-Israel Relationship

At CUFI, we believe a strong, secure, and sovereign Israel is key to a strong and secure United States. Israel needs America, and America needs Israel. We are two nations with shared values, defending the same principles, and thus engaged in the same fight against common enemies. On May 14, 1948, the US was the first country to recognize the nascent State of Israel just eleven minutes after Israel declared its independence. Since then, the US has been a friend to Israel, our most critical ally in the Middle East. One of CUFI’s core concerns is to shape and strengthen the US-Israel relationship to the safety and security of both our nations.

US-Israel Relationship

US senators introduce bill backing $3.3 billion bill annual aid to Israel

Two US senators from opposite sides of the aisle on Thursday introduced a bill to provide annual aid of $3.3 billion to Israel as part of a 2016 agreement.

Republican Senator Marco Rubio and Democratic Senator Chris Coons co-sponsored the bill, according to Reuters, which was originally part of wider legislation that stalled last year over a…

US-Israel Relationship

US Army to field Israeli-made long-range missile on helicopters

ARLINGTON, Texas — The U.S. Army has decided to field an Israeli-made, long-range precision munition on attack helicopters as an interim solution to get after greater stand-off and long-range engagements.

An Army Requirements Oversight Council decision has authorized the service to field a certain number of Rafael’s Spike Non-Line-of-Sight (NLOS)…

US-Israel Relationship

US deploys 750 troops to the Middle East following embassy attack in Iraq

(January 1, 2020 / JNS) U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said on Tuesday that 750 troops are being deployed to the Middle East immediately in response to Iraqi riots at the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, Reuters reported on Wednesday.

Esper said in a statement that an infantry battalion from the Immediate Response Force (IRF) of the 82nd Airborne…

US-Israel Relationship

US officials call attack on Iraq and Syria ‘successful’

(December 30, 2019 / JNS) U.S. officials said on Sunday that airstrikes in Iraq and Syria against Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah militia were successful and warned about additional possible action, reported Reuters.

The strikes were in response to the killing of a U.S. civilian contractor in a rocket attack on an Iraqi military base, officials…

US-Israel Relationship

Israel to acquire 50 F-35 jets, examining deal for third squadron

The Israeli Air Force currently has 20 F-35 stealth fighter jets in its possession and is on the way to acquiring 50 aircraft—two squadrons—a senior executive from Lockheed Martin, the defense corporation that manufactures the jet, has said.

On a recent visit to Israel, Gary North, vice president for customer requirements at Lockheed Martin, who…

US-Israel Relationship

Congress to Education Dept.: Don’t fund anti-Israel programs

Eight members of Congress called for the US Department of Education to prevent federally-funded Middle East Studies Centers from implementing academic boycotts of Israel.

In a letter sent to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, the Congress members expressed “concerns that federally-funded Middle East Studies National Resource Centers (NRCs) are…

US-Israel Relationship

Government confirms it will ban Israel boycotts by councils and public bodies

The Government has confirmed it will proceed with banning local councils from boycotting Israel, as the Conservatives promised in their election manifesto.

“One innovation this speech introduces is we will stop public bodies from taking it upon themselves to boycott goods from other countries to develop their own pseudo-foreign policy against a…

US-Israel Relationship

Congress passes bill requiring annual scrutiny of PA educational materials

(December 19, 2019 / JNS) The U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday unanimously passed a bill which will require the Secretary of State to review Palestinian Authority and United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) educational materials on an annual basis.

The Peace and Tolerance in Palestinian Education Act (H.R. 2343) was…

US-Israel Relationship

US VP Pence expected to visit Israel for Auschwitz ceremony

US Vice President Mike Pence is expected to visit Israel in January for a ceremony marking 75 years since the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp, local media reported on Wednesday.

The event could even draw other world leaders such as Russian President Vladimir Putin and French President Emmanuel Macron.

There are ongoing talks…

US-Israel Relationship

Senate passes measure giving $500 million in aid to Israel; sanctions Iran and Assad

(December 17, 2019 / JNS) The U.S. Senate passed the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on Thursday, which includes U.S.-Israel missile-defense cooperation and up to $25 million for U.S.-Israel counter-unmanned aerial-systems cooperation, as well as sanctioned President Bashar Assad’s regime in Syria, and its allies Iran and Russia.

US-Israel Relationship

At Hanukkah party, Trump signs controversial executive order on anti-Semitism

WASHINGTON — Flanked by evangelical Christian leaders, Jewish members of his administration, and even a few House Democrats, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday that would target alleged anti-Semitism — primarily in the form of Israel boycotts — on college campuses.

At the annual White House Hanukkah Party, Trump put…

US-Israel Relationship

Netanyahu tells Christian leaders: Stand with the truth about Israel

The friendship between Jerusalem and pro-Israel Christians is based on shared values, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a meeting with lawmakers from 25 countries on Monday.

“There are two kinds of friendships: friendships based on values and friendships based on interests. Sometimes they overlap,” Netanyahu told the delegation from the…

US-Israel Relationship

Mayor Moshe Lion gives green light to US embassy project

The Mayor of Jerusalem, Moshe Lion, has announced that the municipality has given the green light to the project of building a permanent headquarters for the US embassy in Israel’s capital.

Lion and deputy mayor Fleur Hassan Nahoum discussed the project’s details in a meeting with embassy personnel and US State Department representatives Addison…

US-Israel Relationship

Trump calls out anti-Semitism and BDS, touts Israeli Americans

(December 7, 2019 / JNS) U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday night called out anti-Semitism and the anti-Israel BDS movement, vowed to keep pressure on Iran and touted his pro-Israel record in front of an overwhelmingly friendly crowd of 4,000 Israelis living in America.

At the Israeli-American Council’s annual conference in Southeast…

US-Israel Relationship

U.S. blacklists Iraqi militia leaders over killing of anti-government protesters

The Trump administration on Friday blacklisted the leaders of three militias in Iraq that U.S. officials said opened fire on peaceful protesters and killed dozens of people.

The designations of the militia leaders who command groups the United States considers proxies of Iran are part of the administration’s campaign to increase sanctions…

US-Israel Relationship

Netanyahu to meet with Pompeo in London to discuss Iran: report

(December 2, 2019 / JNS) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in London on Tuesday, on the sidelines of the 70th anniversary celebration of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit.

Netanyahu is also expected to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French…

US-Israel Relationship

Pompeo to promote normalization of ties with Israel during Morocco visit

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will travel to Morocco next week, where his plans include an effort to normalize relations with Israel, officials said on Wednesday.

“Morocco plays a great role across the region as an important partner in promoting tolerance, has these quiet ties and relationship with Israel as well,” an official was quoted…

US-Israel Relationship

Congressmen introduce bipartisan resolution against rockets fired on Israel

(November 26, 2019 / JNS) Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) and Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) have introduced a bipartisan resolution in the House of Representatives condemning the recent rocket attacks on Israel and supporting the country’s right to defend itself.

“When heinous terrorist groups like Palestinian Islamic Jihad fire hundreds of rockets at…