This article was originally published by Metro NY and is republished with the author's permission.

An Israeli army watchtower looms over a portion of the separation wall built by Israel in the West Bank. (Mamoun Wazwaz, Ma'an Images)

Presidential candidate Barack Obama has been hammering home the message that the United States should bring the Iraq war to "a close." Why, he asks, is America still sending billions of dollars to Iraq when Iraq has a $79 billion surplus from windfall oil profits?

At a time of great economic pain in America, this message finds ready ears. But what about U.S. aid to Israel? Israel's economy outperformed America's last year.

So why is the United States sending billions to one of the richest countries in the world? Of course, given the strength of the Zionist lobby, this is not a palatable question for an election year. But it may become easier to ask when the U.S. starts the gargantuan task of balancing its books.

Ironically, U.S. aid is perhaps the most important obstacle to peace. While the U.S. war in Iraq has greatly impacted the U.S. economy, U.S. aid has cushioned Israel's economy from the costs of occupation of Palestinian land.

Many will argue that Israel needs the aid to bolster its security. But a country cannot expect to feel secure when it's taking other people's land.

Others will argue that U.S. security requires a militarily strong Israel. But Israel already has one of the strongest militaries in the world. And polls consistently show that the U.S. policy that most upsets Arabs and Muslims is its unquestioning support for Israel's actions. This weakens U.S. security.

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Even if the aid survives the financial crisis, Israel should seriously seek peace for geopolitical reasons. The U.S. military debacle in Iraq eroded its superpower mantle and the financial crisis is finishing the job.

Besides running out of cash, the United States will be too weak to provide the diplomatic cover that shields Israel from the political consequences of its occupation.

Other countries may now be emboldened to demand that Israel uphold international law. The European Union, in particular, may finally play a more active role.

As the financial and political muscle of its superpower patron weakens, Israel will find the world much cooler to its colonial enterprise.

From an Israeli perspective, it would do better to go for peace before it is pushed. And from a U.S. perspective, less aid would quickly bring the occupation to "a close," buy more security - and help to balance its tattered books.

Nadia Hijab is a Senior Fellow at the Institute for Palestine Studies in Washington D.C.