The Golden Arches Theory of diplomacy has taught that “no two countries with a McDonald’s have ever gone to war with one another.” While that theory hasn’t held 100 percent since Thomas Friedman introduced it about 30 years ago (mostly because of Vladimir Putin), the premise is basically sound: thriving economies tend to prevent shooting.
This is something to keep in mind as we consider ways to reorient current relationships away from just military spending while finding other opportunities to strengthen allies. I was reminded of this last month when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu surprised a lot of people when he told 60 Minutes he was going to wean his country off of U.S. foreign aid. He said:
“I’ve said this to President Trump and I’ve said it to our own people: their jaws drop. I want to draw down to zero the American financial support, the financial component of the military cooperation that we have. Because we receive $3.8 billion a year. I think that it’s time that we wean ourselves from the remaining military support.”
And to help Israel better stand on its own, there’s some radically sensible legislation kicking around Washington right now. The Eastern Mediterranean Gateway Act aims to deepen U.S. cooperation with key Eastern Mediterranean countries — notably Greece, Cyprus, and Israel — to strengthen energy security, transportation connectivity, and regional defense coordination tied to the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor framework. IMEC promotes supply chain security, trade efficiency, and long-term growth through regionally integrated infrastructure development.
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