As Washington recalibrates its Middle East strategy, one reality is becoming increasingly clear: when it comes to understanding  and confronting Iran, the translation from Persian to English often runs through Hebrew.

Since October 7, 2023, the geopolitical map of the region has shifted dramatically. Iran’s proxies have been activated, regional alliances stress-tested, and American credibility once again placed under scrutiny. Successive U.S. administrations have wrestled with unenforced red lines, from Syria to Iran’s internal crackdowns. Each episode reinforced a perception among adversaries that Washington’s warnings carry uncertain enforcement. That perception has damaged deterrence.

Now, as the United States signals readiness to use military force to uphold international credibility, three strategic realities stand out and each underscores why an “America First” doctrine should lead policymakers to deepen, not distance, their investment in Israel.

First, the map America is working from was redrawn by Israel. In what some analysts call ‘Round One’ of this confrontation cycle, the June 2025 escalation, Israel’s direct engagement with Iranian assets and proxies reshaped the battlefield before Washington had fully repositioned. As the United States repositions diplomats and military assets across the region, it is doing so from a map altered by Israeli action. Consider the counterfactuals: What if Syria were fully positioned to join a northern front? What if Iran still possessed intact Russian-supplied advanced air defense systems across key corridors? What if proxy networks were stronger, better armed, and less degraded? Israeli operations — overt and covert — have narrowed Iran’s options and widened America’s maneuvering room. That is not charity; that is strategic leverage.

Second, firepower is not the same as intelligence. The United States is moving visible muscle into position: aircraft carriers, long-range bombers, missile defense systems. These are essential instruments of deterrence. But as demonstrated during the recent 12-day escalation cycle with Iran, hardware alone does not define outcomes. Knowing where decision-makers are at a given moment, who stands next in the chain of command, how command-and-control nodes are structured, and how internal rivalries shape responses — these are decisive advantages. Such knowledge cannot be improvised. It requires years of linguistic mastery, cultural fluency, human networks, cyber penetration, and relentless analysis. It requires minds trained over decades. Or it requires a regional ally that has already made those investments. Israel has.

Third, alliances are tested not in press releases, but in risk. If direct conflict emerges, some partners will offer quiet support while publicly maintaining neutrality. Several Gulf states, for example, may provide logistical assistance behind closed doors while avoiding overt alignment. Some long-standing “special relationships” may prove more constrained than advertised when it comes to granting access to strategic territory. Few allies combine intelligence depth, operational capability, and political willingness in the way Israel does. There has been much talk about US foreign aid, however few dollars have offered such immense dividends. The dollars to Israel were reinvested back into the US economy, building machines while creating jobs, so that Israeli pilots will risk their lives flying to assist the US in achieving its objectives. These are not theoretical contributions. They are concrete military facts that have already shaped the environment in which any U.S. commander would operate.

When the current administration referred to Israel as a “model ally,” it was not rhetorical flourish aimed at domestic constituencies. This administration does not require that validation. The designation reflected operational reality. Israel fights its own wars — but in doing so, it shapes the strategic environment in ways that directly benefit the United States.

An America First policy does not mean America alone. It means prioritizing policies that maximize American security, credibility, and leverage. As an investor in Israeli deep tech and defense-adjacent infrastructure, I see firsthand the asymmetric advantages Israel brings to Western deterrence. In the Middle East, doubling down on Israel achieves exactly that.

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)