WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he made a deal with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and that Washington would no longer be providing military aid to Israel after the end of this year.
Speaking to Fox News’ Fox and Friends, Trump said Israel no longer needs it and that some politicians were using this US funding to Israel as a talking point to criticise Republicans.
“Now, as far as paying Israel, Bibi Netanyahu and I have made a deal that we give Israel $4 billion a year, and we made a deal months ago that we’re stopping,” Trump told Fox News.
“We’ve already agreed that by the end of this year we won’t be paying Israel. Now we’ll help Israel if they need it.”
BREAKING: President Trump says the U.S. will end roughly $4 billion in annual aid to Israel by the end of the year, revealing that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to the decision. “Because they don’t need it,” Trump said during an exclusive interview on @foxandfriends, describing Israel as a thriving country that no longer requires American financial assistance. Trump also said Netanyahu raised the idea of ending the aid himself. He emphasized that Israel remains one of America’s most reliable allies as the two countries prepare for a major shift in their financial relationship. Download the FOX News app for the latest details: https://t.co/ISpW9Fc0R3
— Fox News (@FoxNews) November 3, 2026
There was no immediate comment from Netanyahu’s office on Trump’s remarks, according to Reuters.
It was not immediately clear which exact funding Trump meant. A memorandum of understanding that provides $3.8 billion in annual US military aid to Israel is approaching its expiration date in 2028, and conversations have been underway on how Washington’s assistance to Israel would evolve beyond that date, Reuters reported.
“They can buy whatever they want. They can buy whatever they want. So can Europe. We make the greatest weapons in the world,” Trump added on Tuesday.
Netanyahu said in a May interview with CBS that he hoped to wean Israel off US military support within a decade. In a June letter to a US congressman, he wrote that the time had come for Israel “to move from aid recipient to partner.”
US public support for Israel has fallen since the Gaza war began in 2023, particularly among Democrats. A June Quinnipiac University poll found 48% of voters and 66% of Democrats believe the United States is too supportive of Israel, up from 16% and 20% when the question was first asked in 2017.
Support for Israel among Democratic voters has plummeted, candidates critical of Israel are winning Democratic primaries and even moderate lawmakers are increasingly willing to challenge decades of US support for Israel, according to Reuters.
“The left uses the $4 billion payment that everybody knows about, well it’s no secret, as a signal of unfairness, and we can’t allow that to happen,” Trump said.
“We were giving them 4 billion, we are, but it gets cut off at the end of the year,” he said. “Why? Because they don’t need it.”
