Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi criticized the U.S. for spending $11 billion of taxpayers’ money on Israel’s missile defense over three years.
In a post on X on Friday, he added that Washington had fired more missile interceptors defending Israel than Israel itself, citing estimates from U.S. foreign policy analyst Stephen Semler.
Based on Semler’s estimates, derived from Pentagon budget documents and other sources, Araghchi highlighted that U.S. forces had fired 609 missile interceptors in defense of Israel from October 2023 to June 2026.
“That is not a symbiotic relationship. It is a parasitic one,” said Araghchi, describing the military relationship between Washington and Jerusalem.
Netanyahu Pushes For Israeli Arms Independence
In June, Vice President JD Vance said the U.S. supplied and funded roughly two-thirds of the defensive weapons protecting Israel in recent months. Meanwhile, Section 224 of the proposed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to deepen U.S.-Israel defense cooperation through joint research, co-production and licensing survived a congressional effort to remove it.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the nation to reduce its military dependence on the U.S. and expand domestic weapons production amid its ongoing conflict with Iran.
US-Israel Weigh Fresh Strikes on Iran
Araghchi’s comment came amid a report that the U.S. and Israeli militaries have drawn up plans for fresh strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites, energy infrastructure and missile arsenal following the November 3 elections. The report came on the heels of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth‘s meeting with Netanyahu and military exercises ramping up.
President Donald Trump has said the U.S. will not attack Iran before the midterm elections.
Meanwhile, Netanyahu has also ordered the IDF and Mossad to pursue the overthrow of Iran’s regime, accusing Tehran of renewed efforts to develop nuclear weapons, the Jerusalem Post reported on Wednesday.
Hormuz Tensions Push Oil Prices
On Thursday, seven oil tankers were attacked or struck naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz overnight, potentially the highest daily toll since the war began on Feb. 28, PBS News reported, citing Iranian state TV. Lloyd’s List Intelligence said that some operators are moving oil through a U.S.-protected lane near Oman at night with tracking systems and phones switched off, then transferring cargo to other tankers in the Gulf of Oman for delivery to Asian customers, the report added.
At the time of writing, Brent Oil Futures dated December 2026 traded 1.02% higher at $114.31 per barrel, while WTI crude dated December 2026 traded 1.78% higher at $101.21 per barrel.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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