Edition · Wed 04 Nov 2026
Geo-politics Desk
Trump Says America Will End Its $4 Billion a Year in Aid to Israel: 'They Don't Need It'
On the morning of Election Day, the president announced that U.S. assistance to Israel would stop at the end of the year, a sudden break with decades of policy that landed in the middle of Israel's coalition talks.
By Rachel · Edited by Chanan Zevin - Chief Editor and Head of Desks
Published
An Election Day bombshell
President Trump said on Tuesday that the United States would cut off roughly $4 billion in yearly aid to Israel at the end of the year, declaring that America's closest Middle East ally no longer needs it. "Israel's our number one; we give them more than anybody else, and they no longer need it," he said in a television interview on the morning of the vote.
An Election Day bombshell
The United States provides Israel with $3.8 billion in military aid a year under a 10-year memorandum of understanding that began in 2018 and runs until 2028. Mr. Trump appeared to suggest he would end it early. Most of that money is spent on American-made weapons, so it ultimately flows to U.S. arms manufacturers.
An Election Day bombshell
Pressed on whether he meant military aid or cash, the president said: "Any way you want to define it." He said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had approached him and that the two had been discussing the issue for a couple of years.
Politics at home and abroad
Mr. Trump tied the decision explicitly to American politics, saying Republicans should not have to "suffer the slings" from Democratic candidates who have made aid to Israel a campaign issue. Aaron David Miller, a former Middle East negotiator for several administrations, said the Israel issue had become "hugely polarizing" inside the Republican Party itself.
Politics at home and abroad
The timing was awkward in Jerusalem. Mr. Netanyahu, who lost his parliamentary majority in last week's election, is trying to assemble a coalition to stay in power. His main rival, Gadi Eisenkot, seized on the news. "The fact that the defense establishment is learning, together with the citizens of Israel, about a change in the fabric of the strategic relationship through the media, shows just how much Benjamin Netanyahu's conduct is a real danger," he wrote.
Politics at home and abroad
Yair Golan, the leader of Israel's left-wing Democrats party, called the announcement a "huge failure" for the prime minister.
Will it really happen?
Former U.S. officials expressed doubt that the administration would follow through, especially if American military operations against Iran resume. Under the Constitution, Congress appropriates the money, and the new Democratic majorities, along with many Republicans, will have their own views.
Will it really happen?
Mr. Netanyahu has spoken openly about weaning Israel off American aid, though never on such a short timeline. Days before Israel's election he told an Israeli television channel that the end of the aid was coming. Formal talks on a new agreement to replace the current memorandum began in May.
A shift years in the making
The announcement reflects how far the politics of Israel have moved in Washington. Support for Israel was once a rare point of bipartisan agreement. Now it divides both parties, with progressive Democrats demanding limits on weapons sales and a vocal wing of the president's own movement questioning the alliance.
A shift years in the making
Mr. Miller said he doubted the United States would "turn off the spigot now" with the threat of renewed war with Iran hanging over the region. For Israel's next government, whoever leads it, the message from Washington is that the old guarantees can no longer be taken for granted.