Sina Raimand – International relations expert

The influence of the Israeli regime in the United States cannot be considered an emerging phenomenon or one based solely on financial lobbying. The roots of this influence go back to Harry Truman’s decision in 1948 to recognize the newly established Zionist regime. This decision was made despite the advice of the majority of his senior military and foreign policy advisors, including George Marshall. Historical patterns show that the Zionist lobby has always cast a shadow over US policies, but it has never meant complete control over Washington’s will.

The dimensions of this influence have undergone a fundamental transformation in recent years. The American think tank Quincy Institute, in its August 2026 report, has stated that the Israeli regime has spent over one billion dollars on public diplomacy since 2023, with an amount exceeding 100 million dollars of these expenditures disclosed under the Foreign Agents Registration Act in the United States.

It is projected that this amount will triple in 2026 compared to 2024. Additionally, 17 firms registered in 2024 and 2025 to represent the interests of this regime in the United States, with the largest contract, valued at 46.5 million dollars, awarded to Clock Tower X, owned by Brad Parscale, former manager of Trump’s election campaign.

The influence campaign has also extended to shaping public opinion through digital tools. According to the Quincy Institute report, the Israeli regime paid 161,000 dollars to the Instagram account jews_of_ny, which has nearly 200,000 followers, and allocated 900,000 dollars to Bridges Partners for coordination with dozens of influencers. This approach presents political messages in the form of personal content and lacks the necessary legal transparency. Nevertheless, analysts believe that despite these expenditures, this campaign has not been very successful in persuading American public opinion, especially the younger generation, and has faced a growing wave of criticism.

The contradiction between the rights of American citizens and US-Israeli regime military cooperation

One of the most bitter manifestations of the Israeli regime’s influence is Congress’s handling of the case of American citizens killed by Zionist forces. Aisha Noor Ezgi Aygi, an American citizen who had traveled to the West Bank for humanitarian activities, was shot and killed by Zionist soldiers in September 2024. On the other hand, according to UN reports, Zionist forces have martyred over 73,000 Palestinians in Gaza since October 2023.

In the face of these realities, the US Congress is considering a bill under Section 219 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027, which expands defense technology cooperation between the two countries to an unprecedented extent. This section creates an executive agent for integrating the Israeli regime’s technology and defense companies into the Pentagon. The Quincy Institute has warned that this bill would intertwine the US military with the Israeli regime’s military more than any other ally, removing this relationship from congressional oversight transparency. In other words, instead of accountability for the killing of American citizens, a new legal structure is being formed that conceals such actions under the cover of defense cooperation.

The gap between elites and public opinion

The trips of US congressional representatives to the occupied territories constitute a key link in the chain of Israeli regime influence. These visits, often funded by lobbying groups, provide lawmakers with a first-hand experience of the regime’s security narrative. Many representatives, after these trips, openly adopt pro-Israeli regime positions and transform their understanding of the realities of occupation.

However, the shifting attitudes of American public opinion regarding the Gaza war paint a more complex picture. Numerous polls indicate that support for the Israeli regime’s military actions has sharply declined among young people, Democrats, and ethnic minorities. This gap between public opinion and the political structure indicates that although the lobby’s influence among elites remains powerful, it has faced increasing resistance at the societal level.

Defense dependency or strategic cooperation

The issue of defense and technology cooperation between the United States and the Israeli regime is the most complex aspect of this relationship. The American-Israeli think tank JINSA, in an August 2026 report, has argued that the Golden Dome project, a layered missile defense system for protecting US territory, would be incomplete without using the Israeli regime’s defense systems against drone threats and cruise missiles. According to this report, Israeli systems are 58 to 88 percent cheaper than American counterparts. JINSA has also warned that excessive focus of the Golden Dome budget on space-based systems would leave American cities vulnerable to drones.

In contrast, critics such as the Quincy Institute assess this cooperation not merely as technical participation, but as a factor in strategic dependency and jeopardizing US decision-making independence. They argue that the integration of supply chains and defense technologies between the two sides will seriously hinder Washington’s ability to oppose the Israeli regime’s military actions in the future.

JINSA, in another report, has claimed that the Ovda air base in the south of the occupied territories, due to its advanced defense systems, is considered a safer option for US military presence than Persian Gulf bases. This claim is made while Iran’s reciprocal military operations in the recent war have damaged 228 US military structures and equipment in the region.

From an analytical perspective, these arguments indicate that the Zionist lobby is trying to establish US technological dependence on the Israeli regime as an undeniable reality, although the accuracy of these claims has been challenged by independent US military institutions.

An examination of the evidence presents a dual image of the US-Israeli regime relationship. On the one hand, the Zionist lobby, with its billion-dollar expenditures and extensive influence network, is deeply rooted in Washington’s political structure. On the other hand, visible shifts in public opinion, the increasing costs of wars, and the existence of critical voices indicate that this influence has never meant absolute US control. The overt tensions between US administrations and the Israeli regime during the Biden and Trump eras are testament to this reality.

US-Israeli regime military cooperation, especially in the areas of missile defense and artificial intelligence, constitutes a direct threat to the national security of West Asian countries and the regional balance. In contrast, the exorbitant costs of these cooperations, the pressure on the US military budget, and increasing public dissatisfaction could gradually limit Washington’s political space for continued unconditional support for the Israeli regime. Although increasing US technological dependence on the Israeli regime offers short-term advantages, in the long term it could become a factor in Washington’s strategic constraints.