The United States has provided $6.5 billion in military aid to Israel since the war began, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday, half of the amount was delivered in May. “This is a massive, massive undertaking,” a senior administration official told the paper.
The figures were revealed during Defense Minister Yoav Gallant's visit to Washington to meet with senior officials. and after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly accused the Biden administration of delaying critical aid the IDF needs to win the war.
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U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant at the Pentagon
(Photo: Defense Ministry )
U.S. military officials reviewed hundreds of items delivered to Israel in their meeting with Gallant. “They reviewed the unprecedented support for Israel since the Hamas attacks of Oct. 7, to include the direct defense of Israel by the U.S. military and a coalition of partners against an Iranian attack in April, as well as preparations for any subsequent contingencies,” officials said in the report.
While the White House repeated its rejection of the prime minister's accusations that the aid was being slow-walked, a senior source told the post that bureaucratic reasons caused some delay. "In terms of bottlenecks, it is a complicated, bureaucratic system that we have for good reason … making sure we fully fulfill all of our obligations to Congress, laws, procedures and regulations.” But, the official acknowledged, “there are issues on the Israeli side, in terms of things they might want, which might not have been totally clear,” the source said.
The officials said that in their meetings with the visiting minister, they also discussed stalemated efforts to close a U.S.-backed deal for a Gaza cease-fire and the return of Israeli hostages.
“obstacles were removed and bottlenecks were addressed in order to advance a variety of issues, and more specifically the topic of force build-up and munition supply,” Gallant said.
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Defense Minister Yoav Gallant speaking after his meeting with senior administration officials in the White House on Wednesday
(Photo: Elad Malka)
“Our ties with the United States are the second-most important element for Israel’s security,” after Israel’s own military. “We need American diplomatic and political support, power projection, supply of munition and more.”