Shared Values Define U.S.-Israel Alliance

August 2, 2026

As Washington argues over how far to back Israel’s wars, Israeli President Isaac Herzog is quietly pushing a far more sweeping idea: that the U.S.-Israel partnership is not just about weapons and strategy, but a “biblical and prophetic” bond rooted in shared values and a fight for the free world.

Story Snapshot

Herzog says the U.S. and Israel “drink from the same set of values” rooted in scripture and democracy, even as American support grows more divided.
He praises President Trump’s “endless” backing while urging that Israel remain a bipartisan cause, not just a Republican one.
Herzog frames Israel’s wars with Hamas and Iran as battles for the entire “civilized world,” asking nations to stand with Israel as a moral duty.
Critics see a deep-state style alliance of elites, pointing to huge defense ties and campus protests that challenge the idea of a simple “shared values” friendship.

Herzog’s “biblical and prophetic” case for the U.S.-Israel bond

Israeli President Isaac Herzog has spent the last several years telling American audiences that the U.S.-Israel relationship is built on more than tanks and treaties. In a recent Fox News interview, he said both nations “drink from this set of values” commanded through “historic spiritual books given to us by the Almighty,” and called the partnership “biblical and prophetic.” He has also described Israel as a “vibrant democracy” fighting for the free world against terror and extremism, arguing that support for Israel is support for basic human dignity and liberty.

Herzog’s language fits a longer pattern in which Israeli leaders stress democracy and shared history to keep U.S. backing strong. In his 2023 address to Congress, he spoke of an “unbreakable” bond, said Israel and the United States would “always remain family,” and tied the alliance to “the values that underpin our civilization.” At think tank events and global forums, he has framed current wars as a clash between “two civilizational sets of values,” placing Israel on the side of post–World War II norms, civil liberties, and human rights.

Security, war, and Trump’s role in a “superbly close” alliance

Behind the warm language sits a hard military reality that many Americans across the spectrum worry about. The United States provides Israel with billions in annual defense support and has helped protect Israel’s “qualitative military edge” for decades, linking industries and sharing advanced technology. In a CBS interview on the 2026 Iran war, Herzog described “superbly close” coordination with Washington, saying the two governments share target lists and decide together “who takes out what,” underscoring just how integrated the war effort has become.

Herzog has repeatedly praised President Trump’s role in this deeper partnership. He told British media that the Iran war was “a decision of President Trump,” calling him “the leader of the free world.” On Fox News, Herzog highlighted Trump’s “endless” backing of Israeli positions and “immense support and friendship,” even while insisting that Israel should stay a bipartisan issue in American politics. He also welcomed Trump’s Gaza plan, saying it offered “real hope” for ending the war, releasing hostages, and reshaping the region toward “a new era” of partnership. Taken together, these comments present Trump as both a champion of Israel and a driver of a wider Western fight with Iran.

Growing U.S. doubts, campus activism, and fears of elite-driven policy

Even as Herzog leans into shared values, he admits the alliance is under pressure in the United States. He has warned that younger Americans are “less engaged in the roots that connect our peoples,” and says that falling support for Israel is fueled by “well-funded disinformation” campaigns on social media. Progressive lawmakers have boycotted his speeches, and campus protests have cast Israel as an oppressor rather than a democratic partner, pulling the debate far from the “family” language he prefers.

For many Americans, on the right and the left, this tension reinforces a broader mistrust of Washington’s foreign policy. Massive defense deals and “superbly close” war coordination look like decisions made by a small circle of political and security elites, not by citizens worried about their own economy, borders, or energy bills. When Herzog calls on the “family of nations” to stand with Israel in a “just and moral battle” against Hamas and Iran, some hear a sincere plea for civilization; others hear another globalist project sold in moral terms while ordinary people pay the price.

Democracy talk meets hard questions about values and power

Herzog’s core argument is that Israel is part of the “free world” and that defending it is a moral duty shared by all who believe in democracy. He stresses Israel’s elections, protection of minority rights, and independent courts, and he often links rising antisemitism with rising anti-Israel sentiment, warning that hatred of Jews and hatred of the Jewish state now move together. He presents Israel as both a frontline shield against terror and a source of innovation that “brings blessings to billions of people,” claiming the country “protects the free world” despite its small size.

At the same time, Herzog strongly backs Israel’s hard military moves, including signing an artillery shell bound for Gaza with the words “I rely on you,” and arguing that “it is an entire nation out there that is responsible,” in reference to Palestinians. For critics, these acts sit uneasily beside appeals to universal values and human rights. They question whether a “sacred bond” can truly rest on shared morality when wars bring heavy civilian suffering and when Congress debates ever-closer integration of U.S. and Israeli defense industries. Herzog’s speeches show how values and power are now tightly woven together in the U.S.-Israel story, leaving many Americans wondering whether the alliance still serves their interests—or mainly those of the elites who claim to speak for them.