President Donald Trump said on Election Day morning that the roughly $4 billion in annual U.S. aid to Israel will be cut off at the end of the year, claiming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was the one who proposed ending it, according to The Jerusalem Post.
Trump made the remarks in a phone interview with Fox News' "Fox & Friends" as Americans headed to the polls in the midterm elections. "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 said.
He said the two sides had already agreed that "by the end of this year we won't be paying Israel." Trump stressed that the U.S. was not abandoning its ally, adding, "Now we'll help Israel if they need it. You know they've been a great ally."
When co-host Brian Kilmeade later asked him to clarify, Trump said, "We were giving them $4 billion. We are, but it gets cut off at the end of the year." Asked why, he replied, "Because they don't need it, Brian."
Trump said Netanyahu raised the idea himself. "Can I be honest with you? He brought it up. He brought it up," Trump said, quoting Netanyahu as telling him, "I think it would be appropriate if we do not receive aid."
The hosts pressed him on whether he meant military aid, cash, or weapons deliveries. "I'm giving four in any way you want to define it," Trump said, describing it as "$4 billion of things and money" that Israel no longer needs.
Trump said Israel can still buy American weapons. "Oh yeah, they can buy whatever they want. They can buy whatever they want. So can Europe," he said.
He also framed the move as taking away a talking point from Democrats who criticize U.S. support for Israel, including Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic Senate nominee in Michigan. "The left uses the $4 billion payment that everybody knows about, it's no secret, as a signal of unfairness, and we can't allow that to happen," Trump said.
The current U.S.-Israel security framework is a 10-year memorandum of understanding signed in 2016 that covers fiscal years 2019 through 2028 and provides $38 billion in military assistance. That works out to about $3.8 billion a year, including $3.3 billion in Foreign Military Financing and $500 million for cooperative missile-defense programs.
The Jerusalem Post noted that the memorandum is not a binding treaty and that annual funding is subject to congressional appropriations, so an understanding between the two leaders would not by itself cancel money Congress has already approved. No detailed implementation plan was presented during the interview.
Netanyahu has previously said he wants to phase out U.S. military aid, telling CBS News' "60 Minutes" in May, "I want to taper off American support for Israel to zero." However, he had described a gradual transition over about a decade, and the Post reported that the end-of-2026 timetable Trump described has not been independently confirmed by the Israeli government.
The Israel Defense Forces declined to comment on Trump's statement when approached by The Jerusalem Post. Clarification from the White House, the Israeli government, and possibly Congress will be needed to determine how the change would work.
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