On December 8, 2025, Congress unveiled the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a sweeping bill that not only lays out the United States’ military budget and priorities for the coming year but also signals a deepening American commitment to Israel’s security amid a rapidly shifting Middle East. The bill, which is the product of months of negotiation and reconciliation between the House and Senate, comes at a time when Israel faces mounting international isolation and regional instability following the fall of the Assad regime in Syria and ongoing violence in Gaza.
A central provision of the NDAA has caught the attention of observers at home and abroad: a public, explicit guarantee that the United States will step in to fill any gaps in Israel’s arsenal or weapons capabilities caused by foreign arms embargoes or restrictions. According to the NDAA, the Secretary of Defense must conduct a comprehensive assessment at least every six months on the impact of any arms embargoes, sanctions, or restrictions imposed by other countries or international organizations on Israel’s defense capabilities. The findings must then be reported to Congress annually, ensuring a continual review of Israel’s so-called Qualitative Military Edge (QME) — the legal requirement that Israel maintains military superiority over any potential regional adversaries.
This commitment is not just symbolic. As reported by Mondoweiss, the NDAA obliges the U.S. to take concrete steps if such embargoes create vulnerabilities in Israel’s security posture. These steps range from enhancing research and logistical cooperation to, more substantively, reviewing and potentially easing regulations that limit what Israel can purchase from the United States. The most consequential option, however, is the directive to leverage American industrial capacity to manufacture substitute defensive capabilities for Israel — effectively guaranteeing that U.S. defense contractors will supply Israel with whatever it cannot obtain elsewhere.
Such assurances come as several key U.S. allies — including Japan, Canada, France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Germany — enacted limited or symbolic arms suspensions to Israel in 2025 in response to the ongoing conflict in Gaza. While these embargoes had little practical effect on Israel’s military, their political symbolism was enough to prompt concern in both Jerusalem and Washington. The NDAA’s language, lacking a precise definition of what constitutes a “gap” in Israel’s capabilities, introduces a flexibility that could allow for significant increases in U.S. aid and weapons transfers, even as criticism of Israeli policy grows louder across the American political spectrum.
Beyond the question of arms, the NDAA also renews and expands defense and research cooperation between the two countries. Notably, it earmarks $70 million for joint research on unmanned aerial systems — drones — in 2026, a marked increase from previous years. The legislation highlights drone technology as a high priority, both for its defensive applications and for countering advances by regional rivals such as Iran, as well as global competitors like China. Artificial intelligence, a central focus of U.S. and Israeli military research, is also emphasized, reflecting the growing overlap between AI and drone warfare.
According to Mondoweiss, this push for deeper technological collaboration is likely just the beginning. The Trump administration, which has championed the idea of a “Golden Dome” defense system for the United States, is expected to use the NDAA as a springboard for expanded public-private partnerships in defense technology. The required unclassified reports on Israel’s defense gaps will add political weight to future requests for increased funding, making it easier for the White House to justify further aid to Israel in the name of maintaining regional stability and technological superiority.
Meanwhile, the regional context that frames these legislative moves has grown more volatile. On December 9, 2025, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz visited the IDF Northern Command base in Safed, where he declared that Israeli forces should remain in Syria as a buffer between “jihadist enemies and the residents of the Galilee and the Golan,” according to JNS. Katz praised the “offensive activity of the command’s personnel across the various arenas,” underscoring Israel’s determination to defend its northern borders in the wake of the October 7, 2023 attacks.
Following the collapse of the Assad regime in December 2024, the IDF expanded its control in southern Syria, maintaining a buffer zone amid ongoing clashes and strikes. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated Israel’s commitment to defending its border communities, stating on December 4, 2025, “After Oct. 7, we are determined to defend our communities along our borders, including the northern border.” Netanyahu also emphasized policies aimed at preventing the entrenchment of terrorists, protecting Druze allies, and ensuring Israel’s security against ground or other attacks.
The diplomatic landscape remains fraught. The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office recently denied a Saudi news report that Netanyahu had refused a U.S.-mediated security agreement with Syria in September 2025, insisting that while there were contacts and meetings, “no agreements and understandings with Syria were ever reached.” Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former Al Qaeda terrorist, has demanded Israel’s full withdrawal to the lines established by the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement, a position Israel rejects due to ongoing threats from Iranian-backed forces and other hostile actors in the region.
Hostilities on the ground continue to flare. On December 9, 2025, three Syrians were reportedly wounded by IDF fire during clashes near the border in the Quneitra area, as Israeli troops attempted to arrest a Palestinian Islamic Jihad operative. The incident unfolded just as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz and Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon were touring the border. Danon later described the threat from Iran and its allies as “clear and immediate,” highlighting Hezbollah’s military buildup and the complex challenges unfolding in Syria.
With the NDAA’s passage, the United States is not only reaffirming its traditional alliance with Israel but also recalibrating its military and diplomatic posture in response to new realities on the ground. The bill’s provisions are likely to blunt the impact of European efforts to restrict arms sales to Israel, while also opening the door to expanded U.S. aid and technological collaboration. As Israel faces diminished political support in the U.S. and increasing scrutiny over its actions in Gaza, this legislative guarantee ensures that American backing will remain robust — at least for now.
In a region where alliances shift and threats evolve with dizzying speed, the NDAA represents both continuity and escalation. Its passage signals that, for all the changes in the Middle East, the U.S.-Israel security partnership endures — and may be poised to grow even deeper in the years ahead.
