When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu eventually leaves office – and he may be on his way out sooner rather than later, following last month’s general election – he will leave behind a long record of damage inflicted on his country and its people, as well as on others.

Strategically, however, one of his most damaging legacies, particularly for the security and wellbeing of the Jewish state, will be the rapid deterioration of its relations with its closest and most consequential ally, the United States. This is not simply a falling-out with America’s political elite; relations with the American public have also suffered.

Worse still, replacing Netanyahu may not be enough to halt the erosion of relations between the two countries, with potentially serious consequences for Israel’s security, economy and international standing. A change of government might, at best, salvage some of what has been lost.

US President Donald Trump’s announcement, on the day of the US midterm elections, that the United States would phase out approximately $4bn in annual military aid to Israel by the end of 2026 came as a surprise, primarily because of its timing and the prospect that decades of assistance would come to such an abrupt end.

It may have been a last-ditch attempt to avert a landslide Congressional victory for the Democrats, but the decision to gradually phase out the aid had reportedly been agreed some time earlier.

Nevertheless, the direction of travel in US-Israeli relations is clear: the almost automatic and unwavering support extended by successive US administrations, particularly since 1967, is cooling. There have, of course, been occasional exceptions, but Washington has generally supported Israel even when the policies and actions of its government have not necessarily served American national interests.

There are both long-term trends and more immediate reasons........

© Al Jazeera