Rabbi Itai Asman, head of the Torat Lechima organization, published an essay Friday arguing that U.S. aid to Israel is not a favor but a historic privilege for America, and that any U.S. abandonment of Israel would end America's own historical role. The essay responds to Vice President Vance's recent remarks about Israeli dependence on American air-defense systems.
Rabbi Itai Asman, chairman of the Torat Lechima organization, published an essay this morning responding to U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance's recent remarks warning Israel against ungratefulness toward American military aid. Vance had stated that two of Israel's three air-defense layers — Iron Dome, David's Sling, and Arrow — are funded and partly produced with U.S. assistance, and urged Israelis to recognize strategic reality rather than personal grievances with President Trump.
Asman's eight-paragraph essay, written in Hebrew, rejects what he calls 'Vance's realism' in favor of a 'historical and Torah-based realism.' He argues that empires that assisted the Jewish people flourished throughout history, and those that turned their back collapsed. The American role in supporting Israel, he writes, was a 'historic privilege' for the United States itself, not a favor Israel must beg for.
'From here onward, if the American administration chooses to turn its back on us or condition our security, it will not annihilate the people of Israel — the eternal people cannot be annihilated — but it will simply bring an end to the historical role of the American empire itself,' Asman writes.
The piece also draws on classical Jewish sources, including a commentary by Rashi on Song of Songs, to argue against excessive reliance on foreign powers. Asman warns against the psychological dependence on U.S. support that he says accompanied the Trump election euphoria.
The essay was posted on the Torat Lechima WhatsApp channel and was picked up by The Zioneer's internal monitoring. Asman is a prominent religious-Zionist activist known for his advocacy of independent Israeli military and spiritual self-reliance.
As The Zioneer previously reported, Vice President Vance has in recent weeks escalated his rhetoric toward Israel, calling Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet ungrateful and warning that Trump is 'the only world leader sympathetic to Israel now.' Asman's essay is the first public theological rebuttal from within the religious-Zionist camp to Vance's broader diplomatic posture.
- DevelopingIsraeli media personalities weigh in on US-Iran deal, offering sharply different takes
- StrongVP Vance promotes US-Iran agreement on Fox News, says deal benefits Israel
- StrongUS VP Vance: 'I wouldn't attack your last remaining strong ally' — Israeli pundit replies
- DevelopingU.S. Ambassador Huckabee Shares Pro-Israel op-ed urging Israeli self-reliance amid Iran deal
Source and signal
A single-sourced dispatch is never rated Confirmed or Strong. Its Signal strengthens only when a second, independent source corroborates it.
- Internal intake