The founding principles of conservatism, which are liberty, national security, fiscal discipline, and the preservation of a free society, call for the United States to keep faith with its allies while defending its own interests without apology. Few partnerships meet that standard as fully as America's relationship with Israel. It is not a diplomatic habit. It is a working alliance that strengthens American security, supports American industry, and protects the freedoms that make this country worth defending, for this generation and the next.
Conservatives believe in sovereignty and in nations that take responsibility for their own defense. Israel is the clearest example of that principle in a dangerous region. It fields its own army, funds most of its own defense, and stands on the front line against Iran and the terror networks Iran sponsors. Every threat Israel stops in its own region is one that never has to be met by American forces, and that serves American families as much as it serves Israel.
Security today also depends on intelligence and technology. Cooperation between American and Israeli intelligence and defense agencies has helped track terror networks, expose state-sponsored cyber operations, and protect critical infrastructure before threats reach American soil. Here in Virginia, that partnership is close to home. Northern Virginia is the center of America's defense, intelligence, and cybersecurity work, and many of the people who carry out that cooperation live and work in our communities.
Conservatives also ask hard questions about how tax dollars are spent, and they should. U.S. security assistance to Israel stands up to that scrutiny. Under the 2016 Memorandum of Understanding between the two countries, the large majority of that assistance is spent in the United States on American-made defense systems, and the share Israel was once allowed to spend at home is being phased out entirely by the end of the agreement. The result is that assistance to Israel supports American manufacturing jobs and keeps our defense supply chains at home rather than relying on foreign suppliers.
The partnership has also produced real advances in the fields that matter most for defending a modern country. Joint work on missile defense, including the Iron Dome, David's Sling, and Arrow systems, much of it co-produced with American companies, has given both nations combat-proven protection against rockets and missiles. Cooperation in cybersecurity, counter-drone technology, and battlefield medicine has followed the same pattern. American service members and first responders benefit from tools that have already been tested under real conditions, and taxpayers get more readiness for every dollar spent.
In the end, preserving freedom of speech, the rule of law, and the liberties of a free people requires a foreign policy grounded in moral clarity and strength. America cannot secure its future by retreating from the world or by abandoning the friends who share its values. Standing firmly with Israel keeps America respected abroad, secure at home, and strong in the industries that defend it. That is peace through strength, and it is a commitment worth keeping for generations to come.