Trump Orders Halt to $4 Billion Israeli Military Aid by Year End

United States President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that the federal government will cease providing approximately $4 billion in annual military assistance to Israel by the end of 2026. This decision marks an immediate shift in a long-standing financial arrangement that has supported the Israeli defense sector for decades.

Trump made the declaration during a phone interview with Fox News on the morning of the Congressional midterm elections. He stated that he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reached an agreement several months ago to terminate the funding. "They are fine with it because they have become a very successful country. They do not need it," Trump said. He added that the United States would continue to help Israel if necessary and described the two nations as the greatest of all allies.

The announcement conflicts with the existing ten-year memorandum of understanding signed in 2019. That agreement provides Israel with $3.8 billion annually and remains in effect until the fall of 2028. The terms require that most funds be spent on weapons manufactured in the United States. Trump noted on Tuesday that American manufacturers produce the greatest weapons in the world.

Israeli officials expressed surprise at the timing of the cutoff. A representative from the Finance Ministry told the Walla news site that no formal document regarding the end of aid had been submitted by the Prime Minister's Office. The official stated that while the ministry was aware of the intention to end assistance, they were caught off guard by the immediate implementation. A senior defense official told the Kan public broadcaster that the military did not expect the announcement, especially not on the day of the midterms, and that Israel would now study the implications of a decision that had not yet been briefed to professional staff.

Gadi Eisenkot, chairman of the Yashar party, criticized the handling of the news. He said that the defense establishment and the public learning of the change through the media demonstrated a danger in Netanyahu's conduct. Eisenkot argued that the Prime Minister can no longer be trusted and must be replaced. The Prime Minister's Office did not provide immediate comment on the announcement.

Netanyahu has previously described ending US military aid as a gradual process over the coming decade. In a June letter to a US congressman, he wrote that Israel should move from aid recipient to partner. He told The Economist in January that he hoped to end the aid within ten years and stated to CBS in May that he wanted support to reach zero. Trump insisted that Netanyahu raised the idea first, noting that the Prime Minister understood the aid was a point of contention among US voters.

The United States provides more military aid to Israel than to any other country. According to the Council on Foreign Relations, Israel has received more than $300 billion in economic and military assistance since 1948 when adjusted for inflation. Under the 2025 budget, the Israeli Defense Ministry's allocation reached a record 110 billion new Israeli shekels, or $29 billion, out of a total defense budget of 136 billion shekels.

Part of the push to end the aid stems from frustrations during the Gaza war, when several allies halted arms supplies. American public support for Israel has declined since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack. A June Quinnipiac University poll found that 48 percent of voters and 66 percent of Democrats believe the United States is too supportive of Israel, up from 16 percent and 20 percent respectively in 2017.