Israel displays a clear ambition: to become militarily autonomous. The country will invest 110 billion dollars – around 93 billion euros – over ten years to build an “independent arms industry”. The announcement was made on Wednesday, December 24 by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during a ceremony organized at a military air base in southern Israel.
After two years of war on several regional fronts, the head of government explained that he wanted to “reduce our dependence, even on our friends”. “We have established our status as a regional power — and in some areas, an international power,” he continued, before adding: “Peace is made with the strong, not the weak.”
3.3 billion in American aid in 2025
Israel has remained, for decades, the largest recipient of American military aid, and most of its equipment comes from the United States. According to figures from the US Congress, Washington provided at least $3.3 billion in military funding to Israel in 2025. The country also sources supplies from several European states, but it faces increasing restrictions on arms deliveries as a result of its devastating war in Gaza since October 2023.
At the same time, a second front quickly opened in the north of the country, with clashes against the pro-Iranian Lebanese Hezbollah. These fighting degenerated in the fall of 2024 into an open war lasting two months.
Israel also faced Iran during a 12-day war last June, sparked by an Israeli attack on an unprecedented scale against military and nuclear sites, as well as residential areas. In this belligerent context, the defense budget is expected to reach $35 billion in 2026. Or 16% of the total budget prepared by the government.
