U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has scrapped a planned trip to Israel following a fresh outbreak of military hostilities between the United States and Iran, according to CNN.
Hegseth was attending the NATO summit in Ankara alongside President Donald Trump when the visit was called off. He had been scheduled to sit down with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz — meetings that would have marked his first trip to Israel since assuming his role.
One of the central topics on the agenda was Israel’s strong objection to a potential American sale of F-35 fighter jets to Turkey. In a CNN interview, Netanyahu said he had personally urged Washington to block the deal, warning that it would upset the balance of power across the region.
Netanyahu also used sharp language to describe Turkey, calling it “a regime that’s infected with the Muslim Brotherhood, which hates the United States.”
Relations between Israel and Turkey have been strained since the Hamas-led assault on Israel on October 7, 2023. In the aftermath, Turkey halted all trade with Israel, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened military action, and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan referred to Israel as a “burden humanity can no longer bear.”
At the NATO summit, President Trump signaled that the U.S. was open to revisiting the fighter jet sale, speaking warmly about Turkey’s relationship with Washington. Trump called Turkey “loyal” and said ties between the two nations were stronger than ever, hinting that the strong relationship could pave the way for the sale to move forward.
The cancellation of Hegseth’s Israel visit came as military tensions between Washington and Tehran escalated. The friction was triggered by the U.S. decision to reimpose sanctions on Iranian oil following Iranian attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz. The standoff quickly turned into direct military exchanges, with U.S. Central Command announcing strikes against Iranian targets while Tehran claimed it had launched its own attacks on American military installations.
As of now, no new date has been announced for Hegseth’s visit to Israel.
