Trump administration praises Obama-era Israel aid package upon launch

Donald Trump has frequently criticized his predecessor for allegedly imperiling Israel.

By MICHAEL WILNER
Updated: OCTOBER 3, 2018 03:40
Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump speaking at the U.N. Security Council, Spetember 26th, 2018 (photo credit: GPO PHOTO DEPARTMENT)
Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump speaking at the U.N. Security Council, Spetember 26th, 2018
(photo credit: GPO PHOTO DEPARTMENT)
WASHINGTON – The Trump administration marked the beginning of the fiscal year on Monday by praising the “bipartisan” support for Israel that secured a landmark defense agreement with the Jewish state.
The $38 billion memorandum of understanding – which allocates $3.3b. in foreign military financing and $500m. in missile defense each year to Israel – was negotiated in the final year of the Obama administration and amounts to the largest aid pledge in US history.
The State Department praised the launch of the aid calendar as an example of America’s “unconditional” support for Israel’s security.
“Our implementation of this historic MoU reflects the enduring and unshakable commitment of the president, this administration, and the American people to Israel’s security,” the State Department said in a statement. “The MoU was negotiated under the previous administration, reflecting the bipartisan nature of this commitment.
“Israel is a valuable and capable ally to the United States that today faces dangerously escalating regional threats, first and foremost from the Iranian regime’s sponsorship of terrorist groups seeking to attack not only Israel but also American interests,” the statement continued. “Israel is also threatened by the reckless proliferation of destabilizing weapons systems into the region that increase the possibility of an escalated conflict in an already dangerous and volatile theater.”
President Donald Trump has frequently criticized his predecessor, Barack Obama, for allegedly imperiling Israel in his policy toward Iran – a policy that many Israelis say justified such an ambitious defense agreement.