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US President Donald Trump says Washington will stop providing Israel with around $4 billion in annual funding after the end of 2026. He said he had reached an agreement with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu months ago.
Trump made the remarks during an interview with Fox News’ Fox and Friends on Tuesday. He said Israel no longer needed the financial support but added that the United States would help if the country required assistance.
“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.
“We’ve already agreed that by the end of this year we won’t be paying Israel. Now we’ll help Israel if they need it,” he added.
Trump also said Israel and European countries could purchase American weapons directly. He argued that ending the funding would remove an issue that some Democrats and left-wing politicians use to criticise Republicans.
It remains unclear exactly which funding Trump was referring to. The existing US-Israel security assistance agreement provides $3.8 billion annually through 2028.
Under the 10-year memorandum of understanding signed in 2016, the package includes $3.3 billion in Foreign Military Financing and $500 million for missile Defence Programmes.
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The difference between the $4 billion figure cited by Trump and the existing $3.8 billion annual package has not been explained. It is also unclear how his announcement would affect the current agreement.
Meanwhile, the United States and Israel began discussions in 2026 on a new security cooperation framework. The talks aim to shape their partnership after the existing memorandum expires in 2028.
Netanyahu has previously spoken about reducing Israel’s reliance on American military assistance.
In a May interview with CBS, he said he hoped Israel could become less dependent on US military aid within a decade. In a June letter to a US congressman, he also described a transition from being an aid recipient to becoming a partner.
Netanyahu’s office had not immediately commented on Trump’s latest remarks.
Trump also linked the funding decision to growing political criticism of US support for Israel.
Public support for Israel in the United States has declined since the Gaza war began in 2023, particularly among Democratic voters.
A June Quinnipiac University poll found that 48% of voters and 66% of Democrats believed the United States was too supportive of Israel. When the poll first asked the question in 2017, the figures stood at 16% and 20%, respectively.
Trump said critics were using the annual funding as an argument against Republicans.
“The left uses the $4 billion payment that everybody knows about, well it’s no secret, as a signal of unfairness, and we can’t allow that to happen,” he said.
He reiterated that the payments would end after this year, arguing that Israel no longer needed the assistance.
The announcement has raised questions about the future structure of US security assistance to Israel. However, the details of the reported agreement and its relationship with the existing aid framework remain unclear.
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