Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi criticised Washington on Friday over its military support for Israel. He claimed the United States spent $11 billion on Israel’s missile defence over the past three years. His remarks have renewed attention on the scale of American military assistance to its ally.
In a post on X, Araghchi argued that Washington had played a major role in protecting Israel from missile attacks. He also claimed American forces had launched more missile interceptors in Israel’s defence than Israeli forces themselves. However, these figures were presented as claims by the Iranian foreign minister.
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Araghchi cited estimates from Stephen Semler, a US foreign policy analyst, to support his argument. According to the figures he referenced, American forces fired 609 missile interceptors while defending Israel since October 2023. The estimates reportedly drew on Pentagon budget documents and other sources.
The Iranian minister questioned the nature of the relationship between Washington and Tel Aviv. He described the arrangement as unequal, arguing that the United States carried a substantial share of Israel’s missile defence burden. His comments focused specifically on American spending and military involvement in protecting Israel.
The $11 billion figure cited by Araghchi covers the three-year period preceding his statement. He presented the spending as money drawn from American taxpayers to support Israel’s missile defence. The post also highlighted the number of interceptors reportedly used by US forces during the period.
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Araghchi’s remarks reflect continuing political disagreements over Washington’s military assistance to Israel. The issue involves public spending, regional security and the role of American forces in protecting Israel. His statement offered Iran’s criticism of that support, rather than an independent assessment of the figures.
The foreign minister shared the claims publicly on Friday, October 23, 2026. His comments centred on the reported costs and operational contribution of US missile defence efforts since October 2023. The provided information did not include an immediate response from American or Israeli officials.