U.S. Defense Policy toward Israel

Reviews / Votes

"The ties that bind Washington and Jerusalem are intensely studied, yet poorly understood. Daniel Samet punches through the accumulated conventional wisdom and fuzzy thinking to capture the strategic dynamics that have kept this important relationship going strong for decades."

-Walter Russell Mead, Global View Columnist at The Wall Street Journal and author of The Arc of a Covenant: The United States, Israel, and the Fate of the Jewish People

"What people think is the history of U.S. aid to Israel contains too many myths and legends. Daniel Samet tells the real story--with its many up and downs, its crises, and the actors who played starring roles. It's a tale worth telling--and worth reading."

-Elliott Abrams, Senior Fellow for Middle Eastern studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and author of Tested by Zion: The Bush Administration and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

"Few international relationships have been more significant, fraught and controversial than that between the United States and Israel. Especially crucial have been the defense elements of the relationship. Daniel Samet incisively and insightfully traces the evolution of American defense policy toward Israel, to the benefit of students of history and practitioners of policy alike."

-H. W. Brands, Pulitzer Prize Finalist and Jack S. Blanton Sr. Chair in History at the University of Texas at Austin

"Samet offers the closest and most detailed analysis of US military assistance to Israel during the second half of the Cold War. He shows that American national interests drove decision-making in every administration. Samet's book dispels many harmful myths about the US-Israeli relationship, and it elucidates the realities of foreign policy-making in Washington D.C. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in defense policy, past and present."

-Jeremi Suri, Mack Brown Distinguished Chair for Leadership in Global Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin and author of Henry Kissinger and the American Century

"Daniel Samet's U.S. Defense Policy toward Israel is a vital contribution to the history of American and Israeli relations that brings with it a crucial message: cooperation between the countries has taken place because of a mutuality of interest, not because of domestic political considerations. Well written and deeply researched, Samet also brings humor and flair to his telling of this important story."

- Tevi Troy, Senior Fellow at the Ronald Reagan Institute and author of five books on the presidency, including The Power and the Money: The Epic Clashes Between Commanders in Chief and Titans of Industry

"It is impossible to fully understand the Middle East today without the United States-Israel relationship, and it is impossible to fully understand the United States-Israel relationship without this impressive book. With extensive research and penetrating analysis, Daniel Samet illumines the shared interests that forged a remarkably resilient defense partnership between these two nations across three decades of the Cold War."

- William Inboden, Professor and Director of the Alexander Hamilton Center for Classical and Civic Education at the University of Florida and author of The Peacemaker: Ronald Reagan, the Cold War, and the World on the Brink