Previous operations

Israel’s “Operation Mole Cricket 19” in June 1982 destroyed 20 Syrian-operated, Soviet surface-to-air missile batteries that Washington considered impregnable through innovative battle tactics and technology, including game-changing electronic countermeasures, disrupting radar tracking. More than 80 Soviet MiGs, piloted by Syrian pilots, were downed, with all Israeli aircraft intact, in the largest dogfight since the Korean War. The lessons of the 1982 operation are highlighted by the U.S. Air Force’s training program and battle tactics.

“Operation Entebbe” in July 1976, undertaken by the Israel Defense Forces, showcased the elite counterterrorism capabilities of Israel, significantly inspiring U.S. counterterrorism operations and accelerating America’s decision to form the highly trained counterterrorism-dedicated Delta Force.

Israel’s eventual victory in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, facilitated by advanced U.S. military systems, over Soviet-armed Egypt, led to the realignment of Egypt from a strategic ally of the USSR and radical Arab regimes (e.g., Syria and Iraq) to a strategic ally of the United States and moderate Arab regimes (e.g., Saudi Arabia).

Israel’s 1967 devastation of Egypt’s Soviet-supplied and trained military aborted the Egyptian drive to become the Soviet-supported Pan-Arab leader. Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser strove to topple all pro-U.S. regimes (e.g., 70,000 Egyptian soldiers in Yemen aimed to topple the pro-U.S. Saudi regime) and to transfer control of the Arabian Peninsula oil to pro-Soviet regimes, at a time when the United States was highly dependent on the importation of Persian Gulf oil. Israel’s military victory spared the United States a severe economic and national security setback, while denying the Soviet Union a dramatic national security bonanza.

Valuable ally

The aforementioned facts highlight Israel’s role as a unique added-value ally of the United States. In addition Israel serves as a leading innovation center for the U.S. high-tech sector, a battle-tested laboratory for the U.S. Armed Forces and the U.S. defense and aerospace industries (saving Washington mega-billions in research and development, increasing U.S. exports and expanding U.S. employment), a showroom demonstrating the edge of U.S. military systems over global competition, a ground-breaking source of intelligence and the largest U.S. military base with no need for U.S. soldiers.