This week, the United States and Israel will perform joint military exercises simulating airstrikes against Iran’s nuclear program.
Over the course of Tuesday through Thursday, the Mediterranean Sea and Israel will serve as the backdrop for the exercise.
Long-distance flights, such as those Israeli pilots would take to reach the Islamic Republic, will be a part of this.
Both refueling aircraft and fighting aircraft from both forces will participate in the drill.
Israel, US Holds Aerial Drill Simulating Attack On Iran Nuclear Sites https://t.co/qQhAMMyhIh
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) November 29, 2022
Is a Real Strike Coming Soon?
Recently, the two countries’ forces have participated in a number of joint air defense exercises. Washington and Jerusalem have inked an accord in which the US comes to aid Israel with missile systems in times of conflict.
Despite having over a thousand short- and medium-range missile systems of its own, Iran continues to transport weapons to other nations and non-state groups, such as Hezbollah, which is believed to have an inventory of over 50,000 missiles on Israel’s northern frontier.
Senior officials from Israel and the Islamic Republic have made statements indicating that their respective militaries are capable of attacking the other, raising the prospect of war at a time when tensions are already high due to Iran’s nuclear program and regional animosity.
In order to have a credible military solution against Iran’s nuclear facilities, Israel has drastically upped its preparedness level and made efforts during the previous year.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have been allotted a total of 58 billion New Israeli Shekels (NIS) for defense this coming year, with an estimated NIS 3.5 billion earmarked to precisely address the threat presented by Iran in the area.
🚨🇮🇱🇺🇸 US and Israel to simulate an attack on Iran and all its proxies in the coming weeks. pic.twitter.com/vl9hN3scMF
— Terror Alarm (@Terror_Alarm) November 23, 2022
Ready to Hit Hard
IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kohavi visited the United States capital last week to discuss the upcoming exercise with officials.
While in the United States, Kohavi met with high-ranking American officials like Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley and CENTCOM Commander Michael Kurilla after returning to Israel a day earlier than anticipated following a fatal double bombing in Jerusalem.
There have been a number of combined training and operational operations between the IDF and CENTCOM soldiers in the past year.
A week before Kohavi’s visit, Kurilla was in Israel, where he visited the northern border and saw the Israeli Air Force’s F-35 Adir stealth fighter fighters.
US and Israel ‘Working Together’ To Plan For Whatever Comes
During Kurilla’s meeting, Kohavi said that the two nations were “beginning to develop joint defense capacity at an exponential rate” against Iran and other dangers in the Middle East. “We are working together on all frontiers to collect information, minimize the threats, and plan for diverse circumstances in either one or numerous battlegrounds,” Kohavi said.
Former Defense Minister Benny Gantz warned reporters at the start of the month that Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu should think “seriously” before ordering an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, even though Israel has the ability to do so.
“Israel is able to take action in the Iranian situation. We are prepared, have the means of development, and have a vision for the future. We should get ready for that eventuality, and we should think this through well before acting on it,” he added.
Gantz argues that a plan of attack against Iran “should be devised,” adding that “this subject should also be studied very thoroughly before implementation.”
