Defense Minister Israel Katz was set to fly to Washington on Wednesday to meet with US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and other top US defense officials to discuss Iran and a variety of other weaponry and strategic security issues.
Hegseth has been a key figure in the Trump administration on Iran and Yemen’s Houthis, whereas he has been discussed much less regarding Gaza ceasefire negotiations or post-war Gaza arrangements.
Traditionally, Israeli defense ministers visit DC to meet with their American counterparts to ensure the ongoing quality of weapons superiority over Israeli adversaries.
Israel is expecting additional squadrons of F-35 and F-15EX fighter jets, as well as KC-46 refueling aircraft and an ongoing resupply of ammunition and aerial bombs for fighting its various fronts.
In addition, at various points during the war, the US has stationed naval vessels, Patriot batteries, and THAAD batteries in and around Israel to help with shooting down aerial threats from Jerusalem’s enemies.
Katz is also expected to try to continue the Israeli push to get the Trump administration to take a hardline on Iran regarding any attempts it might make to rebuild its nuclear weapons program or its ballistic missile program.
Joining Katz for the trip is Defense Ministry Director-General Maj.-Gen. (res.) Amir Baram, outgoing IDF Operations Directorate chief Maj.-Gen. Oded Basiuk, outgoing IDF military attaché to Washington Maj.-Gen. Hidai Zilberman, and Katz’s military secretary, Brig.-Gen. Guy Marciano.
A trip that had been planned for a long time
The defense minister’s visit takes place after multiple attempts by Katz to visit the US, and one planned visit by Hegseth to Israel.
While no public narrative has explained the prior visit cancellations, there have been implications that at earlier points, Israel and the US saw less eye-to-eye on various Iran and Gaza issues.
Also, Hegseth has been plagued by various local domestic American political scandals, which, at times, have raised questions about whether Trump would fire him.