Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Sunday that Israel’s Netanyahu administration became a global threat and arms sales to Israel should be stopped. Speaking at a news conference in Djibouti where he attended a summit of top diplomats of Africa, Fidan stated that selling arms to Israel meant complicity in genocide. He reiterated that Türkiye was part of a joint letter calling on countries to stop arms exports to Israel with 53 other signatories and said the letter was presented to the United Nations on Nov. 1.
Türkiye has been a virulent critic of the Netanyahu administration as Israel’s attacks have killed more than 42,000 people since Oct. 7, 2023.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced the efforts for the initiative last month as he addressed the BRICS summit in Kazan. Lamenting that Israel was becoming more reckless in its attacks due to the unconditional arms support it obtained, Erdoğan has called on BRICS members to support Türkiye in stopping arms sales to Israel. "Together, we can stop massacres and tears in the region," Erdoğan stated.
Israel’s main ally United States alone has provided $17.9 billion in military aid to Israel since Oct. 7, 2023, a report revealed last month. The report, titled "United States Spending on Israel's Military Operations and Related U.S. Operations in the Region, October 7, 2023-Sept. 30, 2024," prepared by the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at Brown University, shows extensive support for Israel's operations and bolstering the U.S. presence in the Middle East. The report details that the U.S. provided Israel with $6.8 billion in Foreign Military Financing (FMF), $5.7 billion for missile defense systems like Iron Beam, $1 billion for heavy weaponry, and $4.4 billion to replenish U.S. weapon stocks transferred to Israel. This $17.9 billion aid includes funds from prior agreements and reflects only public support, according to the report.
U.S. military aid to Israel flows through several channels: the FMF, Excess Defense Articles (EDA), Foreign Military Sales (FMS) and U.S. stockpiles in Israel. The report notes that all of Israel's missile defense systems, including the Iron Dome, Arrow and David's Sling, are developed with significant U.S. funding and joint production in both the U.S. and Israel. U.S. military support to Israel has steadily increased since 1978, with the largest share approved under the Biden administration.