Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dismissed suggestions that Israel is a client state of the United States, describing such claims as “hogwash” despite Washington supplying nearly 68 percent of Israel’s foreign-sourced weapons.
Speaking in Jerusalem on Wednesday during a high-profile visit by US Vice President JD Vance, Netanyahu defended Israel’s independence, saying the alliance between both nations is built on shared values rather than subordination.
“I want to put it very clearly. One week they say that Israel controls the United States. A week later they say the United States controls Israel. This is hogwash,” Netanyahu said during a joint press conference.
The remarks came at the close of talks aimed at reinforcing a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. The truce, brokered under heavy international pressure, has been repeatedly tested by renewed clashes and mutual accusations of violations.
Netanyahu insisted that while Israel values its alliance with Washington, it will not compromise its sovereignty. “We have a partnership, an alliance of partners who share common values and common goals,” he said. “We can have disagreements here and there, but overall we have reached a strong understanding on how to achieve our shared objectives.”
Vice President Vance responded affirming that the United States views Israel as a partner, not a subordinate. “We do not want a vassal state, and that is not what Israel is,” he said. “We want a partnership, we want an ally here.”
Vance’s visit followed trips by US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, as part of an American diplomatic campaign to stabilize the region after multiple ceasefire violations.
Analysts told The Daily National News that the renewed US engagement is aimed at preventing the truce from collapsing completely after weeks of deadly skirmishes between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants.
Palestinian officials said that Israel bombed Gaza on Sunday, breaking the terms of the ceasefire, while Israel accused Hamas of killing two Israeli soldiers in Rafah. Both sides continue to blame each other for undermining the truce.
Vance warned that disarming Hamas and rebuilding Gaza would be a “very tough task,” but stressed that both goals were essential to long-term stability.
“We have a very tough task ahead of us, which is to disarm Hamas but rebuild Gaza, to make life better for the people of Gaza while ensuring Hamas can no longer threaten Israel,” he said.
He also outlined plans for an international security force that would oversee Gaza’s reconstruction and maintain peace as Israel withdraws its troops, a key element of Trump’s proposed 20-point peace plan.
Vance added that Turkey could play a “constructive role” in the next phase of the ceasefire process. “Our Israeli friends and Americans will work together to mediate the process and rebuild critical infrastructure,” he said.
However, reports that Turkey could provide troops for the international force have triggered alarm among Israeli lawmakers.
Netanyahu signaled his opposition to any Turkish involvement in Gaza’s security arrangements. “We will decide together about that,” he said. “I have very strong opinions about that. Want to guess what they are?”
Turkey helped persuade Hamas to accept Trump’s plan and said it would join an international task force to monitor ceasefire implementation. Ankara’s defense officials have stated that Turkish forces could serve in either a military or civilian capacity if needed.
As Netanyahu met with Vance, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) was preparing to deliver its advisory opinion on Israel’s legal obligations to provide humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
The ICJ ruling, requested by the UN General Assembly, follows Israel’s effective ban on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). While non-binding, the opinion could carry significant diplomatic and legal consequences.
Meanwhile, Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, gave preliminary approval to a controversial bill applying Israeli sovereignty to the West Bank. The move drew immediate backlash from Washington, which has long considered annexation a red line.
Netanyahu had reportedly urged lawmakers to delay the bill until after Vance’s visit to avoid diplomatic friction. But far-right members of the coalition, including Avi Maoz of the Noam party, insisted the measure was long overdue.
“The time has come to apply sovereignty,” Maoz declared during heated exchanges in the Knesset. “We have an obligation to settle in the land of Israel.”
Despite public affirmations of unity between Washington and Jerusalem, tensions persist over settlement expansion, Gaza’s reconstruction, and the future of the truce.
The Daily National News reported that Israel has violated the ceasefire 80 times in the past 11 days, killing at least 80 Palestinians. Israel claims Hamas has delayed the return of hostages’ bodies, calling it a breach of the agreement.
Hamas has so far returned 15 bodies, including two transferred by the Red Cross on Tuesday night identified as Aryeh Zalmanovich and Tamir Adar, while 13 remain unaccounted for.
Palestinian officials said many of the bodies returned from Israel showed signs of torture, with several bound and blindfolded.
Dozens of Palestinians gathered at Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza for a mass funeral for 54 unidentified victims, many of whom bore freezer burns from prolonged storage.
Civil defense officials say Palestinian civilians are still being shot as they unknowingly cross the “yellow line” marking Israeli troop withdrawals. Israel said it has begun marking the area with yellow concrete blocks to reduce confusion.
The fragile ceasefire, the humanitarian crisis, and political tensions in both Israel and the United States have cast uncertainty over whether peace in Gaza can hold. Netanyahu’s rejection of US dependency claims appears aimed at reinforcing Israeli autonomy amid growing scrutiny from allies and critics alike.
