Trump Says US Will End $4 Billion in Annual Funding to Israel After This Year

Washington, United States. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he had reached an agreement with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu under which the United States will end about $4 billion in annual funding to Israel after this year. Washington will nonetheless keep selling weapons to its close Middle East ally, he said.

Announcement on Election Day

Trump made the statement as Americans voted in midterm elections that will determine whether his Republicans lose their hold on Congress. He presented the step partly as a way to remove what he called a “bad talking point” that left-wing Democrats had used against Republicans over backing for military assistance to Israel.

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Analysts suggested that the timing of the declaration was an Election Day ploy.

Remarks on Fox News

Speaking on the “Fox & Friends” program on Fox News, Trump said Israel no longer needed the money. He also said some Democrats and left-wing politicians were using American financial support for Israel to attack Republicans. He said he and Netanyahu had settled the matter months earlier and that Washington had already agreed to stop paying Israel by the end of the year. He added: “Now we’ll help Israel if they need it”.

Unanswered Questions on the Funding

Trump gave no details and did not explain how the payments could end this year. The Memorandum of Understanding that provides $3.8 billion in US military aid to Israel annually runs until September 2028.

He appeared to accept that aid to Israel had become a political liability for him among some voters, since it no longer enjoys the firm bipartisan consensus it held for decades. Opinion polls indicate that overall American public support for Israel has fallen, mostly because of the Gaza war.

Background and Wider Context

Talks have been under way on how US assistance to Israel would develop after 2028. Netanyahu had already said he expects American aid to taper off over time. Trump nevertheless seemed to indicate that his decision was final, in what would be a major change in US-Israel relations. The two countries are still in conflict with Iran, more than eight months after they jointly attacked the Islamic Republic.

Israel’s political future is also unclear. In the October 27 election, Netanyahu, who has aligned himself closely with US Republicans, lost his governing majority, but his opponents were not left with a clear route to remove him. The outcome is expected to lead to prolonged negotiations over forming a new government.

Neither the White House nor Netanyahu’s office replied to requests for comment from Reuters.