US to stop $4B in annual aid to Israel by year-end, Trump claims Netanyahu agreed
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
WASHINGTON, DC: In a major development in US-Israel strategic and financial ties, President Donald Trump announced that the US is planning to end its yearly $4B funding to its Middle Eastern ally from the end of this year.
The announcement follows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s earlier statement that he wants to gradually “draw down” US military aid to zero.
Trump announces agreement with Israel to end $4B in aid
During a telephonic interview with ‘Fox and Friends’ on Tuesday, November 3, President Donald Trump said he had reached an agreement with Netanyahu to end the annual funding of roughly $4 billion.
However, the President did not provide further details about the agreement.
“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,” he said, adding that the money would get “cut off at the end of the year.”
Trump made the statement on Tuesday as Americans headed to polling booths to cast their votes in the midterm elections.
On stopping aid, Trump said Israel was “fine with it because, you know, they have become a very successful country,” adding that “they don’t need it.”
“Now we’ll help Israel if they need it. You know they’ve been a great ally,” he said, adding that the idea to halt the aid had come from Netanyahu himself.
US aid to Israel remains a contentious issue during campaign
US aid to Israel remained one of the most contentious issues during the midterm campaign, particularly in the Michigan Senate race.
Democratic Senate nominee from Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed, faced criticism over his stance on US aid to Israel, which became a major issue in his race against Republican candidate Mike Rogers.
Although El-Sayed denounced an outside group's midterm ad linking US aid to Israel with rising living costs in America, his former Democratic primary rival, Haley Stevens, endorsed Republican candidate Rogers shortly before Election Day.
Israel wants to reduce dependence on US funding
Earlier in July, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he wants Israel to reduce its dependence on US military aid, saying Washington’s funding to Israel was “like welfare.”
“I want to stop US aid. It is like welfare. I do not want it,” Netanyahu said in an interview with Israel’s Channel 14 broadcast in July.
“US funding represents a small part of gross domestic product and Israel now has enough financial capacity to cover the amount entirely from its own resources,” Netanyahu said.
Under a 10-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed in 2016, the US currently provides Israel with $3.8 billion annually ($3.3 billion in foreign military financing and $500 million for missile defense).
