- President Trump announced ending $4 billion annual military aid to Israel.
- Move risks congressional standoff over existing $38 billion deal.
- Trump claimed Netanyahu agreed, citing aid as a political issue.
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced that his administration would end nearly $4 billion in annual military assistance to Israel, saying he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had agreed to stop the aid by the end of the year.
The announcement, made during an interview on Fox & Friends on Election Day, could trigger a standoff with Congress over the future of the assistance.
“They’re fine with it because they’ve become a very successful country,” Trump said. “They don’t need it. And we won’t be paying anymore…we won’t be paying Israel. We’ll help Israel if they need it. They’ve been a great ally.”
BREAKING: Trump on Israel: We won’t be paying any more to Israel. By the end of this year, we won’t be paying Israel. They’re fine with it. We will help Israel if they need it. https://t.co/SAx0sYZ9Wb
— Clash Report (@clashreport) November 3, 2026
Trump said the agreement had been reached with Netanyahu “months ago”.
US-Israel Military Aid Deal Runs Until 2028
The announcement could signal a significant shift in the US-Israel relationship, which has long been supported by billions of dollars in American military assistance, Politico reported.
Under a 10-year agreement signed during the Obama administration, the US committed to providing Israel with $38 billion in military aid between 2019 and 2028.
Trump’s proposed timeline has raised questions about how the administration intends to halt the assistance before the agreement expires and whether congressional approval would be required.
More than 90 per cent of the funding goes to American defence companies, meaning the money largely remains in the US.
The Pentagon referred questions to the White House, which did not respond to a request for comment. The Israeli Embassy could not be reached for comment.
Trump Says Military Aid Has Become A Political Issue
During Tuesday’s interview, Trump described the annual assistance to Israel as a “bad talking point” for Democrats, including Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed.
“The left uses the $4 billion payment … as a signal of unfairness. And we can’t allow that to happen. I don’t like that. … It’s almost too easy to target,” he said.
Former Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, who had unsuccessfully pushed to cut military assistance to Israel while in Congress, suggested that the announcement was linked to the Republicans’ political difficulties ahead of the midterm elections.
“Amazing how being on the verge of Republicans getting wiped out in the midterms changes hearts and minds,” Greene wrote on social media.
“Trump getting permission from Netanyahu to end annual aid to Israel isn’t going to change today’s election results. But it does show you how bad the polling is on that issue,” she added.
Netanyahu Faces Political Uncertainty In Israel
The announcement comes a week after Israel’s parliamentary elections left Netanyahu fighting to retain power.
His Likud party emerged with the largest number of seats, but his right-wing coalition fell short of the 61 seats required for a majority, setting the stage for difficult negotiations to form a new government.
Israel’s standing in the US has weakened over the past three years amid public outrage over its actions during the Gaza war. An increasing number of Democrats have backed conditioning or ending American military aid to Israel.
Meanwhile, some Republicans seeking to reduce US military involvement abroad have also come to view Israel as an obstacle to that goal.
How US Military Assistance To Israel Works
Israel is designated a major non-NATO ally, a status that gives it priority in arms sales and transfers of surplus American military equipment.
Most of the military assistance comes through financing that allows Israel to purchase US-made defence equipment. The annual package traditionally includes $3.3 billion in Foreign Military Financing and another $500 million for cooperative missile defence programmes.
The funding accounts for less than one per cent of the annual US federal budget.
Netanyahu has indicated for years that Israel would eventually need to become less dependent on American military financing. Earlier this year, he told CBS News that he wanted to reduce US support to zero.
Trump said Netanyahu had first raised the possibility of ending the assistance.
Netanyahu said, “It would be appropriate if we don’t receive aid,’ because he understands that this is one of their points of contention.”
However, Netanyahu is also keen to maintain US-Israeli defence cooperation, particularly in technology. Some officials and experts in both countries have advocated expanding such partnerships.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: abplive.com
