Shortly after landing at Ben-Gurion Airport on July 13, hearing speeches by President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Yair Lapid and delivering a short address himself, US President Joe Biden will be taken to a military base at Palmachim on the Mediterranean coast. There, his hosts will show him the best merchandise and top-of-the line technology that the Israeli defense industry has to offer, specifically a laser-based missile interception launcher in development with US funding and for which Israel has high hopes as a strategic tie-breaker in the Middle East.

The launcher, which experts estimate will be operational in about 18 months, is being touted as a powerful response to the huge stockpile of rockets and missiles held by Hezbollah and being modified into precision rockets by Iran. Unlike the Israeli-developed Iron Dome missile interceptor, whose interception capabilities are limited in scope, the laser would be able to handle a large number of simultaneous launches.

Israel is expected to ask Biden to increase American funding for the development of the laser interceptors that will greatly improve the peace of mind of Israel’s new allies in the region, among them Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Emirati President Mohammed bin Zayed, whose countries are highly vulnerable to the ballistic threats of the Shiite axis, from Tehran through Beirut to Sanaa.

The visit of an American president to Israel and its neighbors is always a major event and this one will have particular bearing on domestic politics. Lapid, who took office a little over a week ago, needs all the photo ops he can get to bolster his image as a world leader ahead of the Nov. 1 elections, while Biden needs all the help he can get for the Democrats in the November midterms.