Trump says US military aid to Israel will end “by the end of the year”

What Trump said and when

On Tuesday 3 November 2026, the day of the US midterm elections, President Donald Trump told Fox News in a telephone interview that he wanted to end the annual payment to Israel before the end of December ¹². “We’ve already agreed that by the end of the year we won’t be paying Israel any more,” he said, referring to “a deal made months ago” with Benjamin Netanyahu ². Israel had become “a very successful country” that “doesn’t need it”, Trump said, and it was Netanyahu who “brought it up” ¹.

Trump put the aid at “$4 billion” and linked it to the election campaign. He mentioned Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic candidate for the US Senate in Michigan and a critic of Israel, and asked why Republicans should “take the hits” over the issue “when they don’t need it” ². Asked which equipment or funding would be affected, he did not specify ².

What the current agreement provides

A ten-year memorandum of understanding governs US military aid. Negotiated towards the end of the Obama administration, it took effect in fiscal year 2019 and runs to the end of fiscal year 2028, in September 2028 ¹². It provides $3.8 billion a year, including $3.3 billion in Foreign Military Financing (FMF) and $500 million for missile defence. Most of the money must be spent on US equipment ¹². In 2026 and 2027, Israel must spend 92% of its FMF allocation on US products. That rises to 100% in 2028 ². Congress has also appropriated money for cooperation outside the memorandum, including $202.5 million for joint programme development in 2026 ⁶.

A memorandum of understanding is not legally binding, but the annual aid levels were written into the defence legislation for fiscal year 2021, and Congress votes on appropriations ². According to the Times of Israel, Brett McGurk, a former national security official under Joe Biden, pointed out that ending aid early was “a decision for the president and Congress” ¹. The Times of Israel notes that Trump’s figure of $4 billion differs from the $3.8 billion in the memorandum ¹².

An announcement that took Jerusalem by surprise

Netanyahu had himself raised the prospect of phasing out aid. In January, he told The Economist of a reduction spread over a decade ¹. But Trump’s timetable took Israeli officials by surprise. According to the news site Walla, cited by the Times of Israel, a Finance Ministry official said the prime minister’s office had sent no formal document and the ministry had been taken aback by how soon the measure would take effect ¹. A senior defence official told public broadcaster Kan: “We did not expect this announcement, certainly not today” ¹. Two Finance Ministry sources told ABC News that the budget had been drawn up on the basis of the current agreement ².

The prime minister’s office did not respond on 3 November ¹². On Friday 6 November, it posted a message on X presenting the change as a sign of maturity. It began: “Today, Israel has a strong and stable economy” ³.

Political reactions in Israel and Washington

President Isaac Herzog said on Thursday 5 November that the announcement had hit him “like a thunderbolt” and worried him “a great deal” ³⁴. Gadi Eisenkot, who has since been asked to form a government, called the relationship with the United States “a key element” of national security and demanded an immediate explanation from Netanyahu ¹². According to the Times of Israel, Yair Golan of the Democrats spoke of “serious damage to Israel’s security”. Avigdor Liberman wrote that “the price of Trump’s support for Netanyahu” came to $3.8 billion a year ¹. Reserve General Giora Eiland, a former head of the National Security Council, pointed to contracts already signed and to joint projects, including laser technology ³.

Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, acknowledged on 5 November that he did not know whether the aid would end immediately or when the memorandum expired. It “still has a few years to run”, he said ⁴. He subsequently argued for a shift to “a commercial relationship” ³.

Where the American public stands

A Quinnipiac poll in June 2026 found that 48% of US voters considered support for Israel excessive, up from 16% in 2017 ¹. An October ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos survey found that 58% of Americans favoured reducing or ending military support ².

Sources

1. Jacob Magid, Lazar Berman, Stav Levaton et agences, « Trump says US to end $4 billion in annual military aid to Israel by end of 2026 », Times of Israel, 3 novembre 2026, https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-says-us-to-end-4-billion-in-annual-military-aid-to-israel-by-end-of-2026/
2. ABC News, « Trump says $4 billion in Israel military aid will end this year, citing political reasons », 3 novembre 2026, https://abcnews.com/Politics/trump-israel-aid-end-year-citing-political-reasons/story?id=137809564
3. JTA / Times of Israel (édition française), « Si certains présentent la fin de l'aide militaire US comme une transition vers le partenariat, les Israéliens s'inquiètent », 7 novembre 2026, https://fr.timesofisrael.com/si-certains-presentent-la-fin-de-laide-militaire-us-comme-une-transition-vers-le-partenariat-les-israeliens-sinquietent/
4. Times of Israel, direct du 5 novembre 2026 (entrées de 19 h 57 et 23 h 01), https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog-november-5-2026/
5. Congressional Research Service, Beginning of Terms: Senators and Representatives, rapport RS20722, https://www.congress.gov/crs_external_products/RS/PDF/RS20722/RS20722.29.pdf
6. Commission des crédits de la Chambre des représentants, crédits de la défense pour 2026, p. 7, https://appropriations.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/republicans-appropriations.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/final-fy26-defense-minibus-4-summary.pdf

The story in 30 seconds

Read the main facts at a glance and share the link.

1. On 3 November, Trump said he wanted to end the annual payment to Israel before the end of 2026. He said Netanyahu had proposed the change.
2. The current agreement provides $3.8 billion a year until September 2028. Congress votes on the funding.
3. On 5 November, Herzog called the announcement a “thunderbolt”. On 6 November, Netanyahu’s office praised Israel’s “strong and stable” economy.

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