The Israeli Air Force announced this week that it will conduct a proactive mock mission with the U.S. Air Force to take out Iranian nuclear sites. It is the largest joint aerial drill that the two countries have conducted together in years. According to the Jerusalem Post, “The drill will take place from Tuesday until Thursday over the Mediterranean Sea and Israel. It will include long-range flights such as those that Israeli pilots might need to make in order to reach the Islamic Republic.”
Given the distance of the training, aerial refueling tankers from both countries will participate in the drills along with fighter jets. The joint training comes after the U.S. and Israel have recently promised tighter military and intelligence cooperation and support to one another, with the U.S. promising to assist Israel with missile defense if it were ever to be attacked.
In a meeting with CENTCOM Commander Michael Kurilla, last week, IDF Chief of Staff, Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kohavi said, “We are operating together on all fronts to gather intelligence, neutralize threats, and prepare for various scenarios in either one or multiple arenas.”
The joint drills come as Benjamin Netanyahu is forming a government in response to recently being re-elected Prime Minister of Israel. Netanyahu has previously consistently warned that Israel would preemptively strike Iran if the country were ever to develop a nuclear weapon.
.jpg){kind=link}