WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the United States would stop providing aid to Israel at the end of 2026, two years before the current military aid agreement is set to expire.
Speaking on Fox News on Election Day, Trump said he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had agreed months ago to end what Trump described as roughly $4 billion in annual assistance. Trump said Israel no longer needs the funding and could continue to buy U.S. weapons. Netanyahu’s office did not immediately comment.
“It’s a bad talking point because when you say, ‘Why don’t we give everybody $4 billion?’ Israel’s our number one; we give them more than anybody else, and they no longer need it,” he said.
The United States provides Israel with $3.8 billion a year in military aid under a 10-year agreement that runs through 2028. Trump did not specify which funding would end or how his administration would carry out the cutoff. Congress appropriates the aid annually.
The two countries began talks in May on an update to the current agreement, CNN reported. Netanyahu has previously said Israel should move away from relying on U.S. military aid.
“If you think we’re going to continue receiving what I secured twice, tens of billions of dollars in American aid for the defense budget, get used to the fact that we won’t,” he said.
Trump also framed the decision in domestic political terms, saying Democrats had used the aid to criticize Republicans. He singled out Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, who has opposed unconditional military aid to Israel.
“You can consider it barter. You can consider military aid or cash. What we give them — $4 billion of things and money — and they don’t need it. And I was approached by Bibi Netanyahu, and we’ve been talking about it for a couple of years because it’s a lot of money,” Trump said.
