Israel  long  existed  as  an  energy-less  island — a country  wholly  dependent  on energy imports to power its grid, move its vehicles and underwrite its economy. The Jewish state is completely isolated from its  energy-rich  neighbors who  continuously use energy  as  a weapon and a foreign policy tool to promote anti-Israeli campaigns throughout the world.

Today, however, Israel is swiftly shaking off its foreign dependencies and charting a course toward energy independence. This mission runs parallel to American efforts to ratchet up domestic  production  of  oil  and  gas . Both countries’  shared  interest  in  strengthening energy security and enhancing energy independence can manifest itself in a new strategic energy partnership—including joint research-and-development initiatives to unlock new resources , industrial  and  commercial  cooperation , academic  partnerships  ,  strategic dialogue and more.

In  December  2010 ,  exploratory  drilling  off  Israel’s  northern  coast  uncovered  a  major natural gas field named ‘Leviathan,’ containing at least 18 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, enough to  power  Israel  for  over 100 years .  This find came on the heels of discovering the ‘Tamar’ field, which is already providing the Jewish state with much-needed  energy relief . In addition to  holding  tremendous  market value , these  finds  also  offer the potential for Israel to become a net energy exporter to a region starved for gas, where alternate sources are Iran, Iraq, Qatar and Russia.