As explained in a telephone interview with Fox News, the decision was agreed with the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who would have raised the possibility of interrupting the funds. Trump justified the measure by stating that Israel is a prosperous country that no longer needs that assistance and maintained that Washington will continue selling it weapons.

First modification: 03/11/2026 - 17:55

Trump assured that the agreement with Netanyahu was discussed for months and that the Israeli prime minister himself considered it appropriate to end the aid. “Israel has been a great ally, much more reliable than most,” said the president, who also noted that the United States could help the country if it needed it in the future.

However, it is unclear what funds would be cut off or how the decision would be enforced. The memorandum of understanding signed in 2016 calls for US military assistance of $3.8 billion annually through 2028. The White House and Netanyahu's office did not immediately respond to Reuters queries about the announcement.

Trump described the funds as military aid, cash or goods, without specifying which items would be affected. Assistance is largely channeled through the foreign military financing program, which forces Israel to allocate a good part of those resources to the purchase of weapons produced in the United States.

To display this YouTube content, you must allow advertising and audience measurement cookies.

An extension on your browser appears to be blocking the video player from loading. In order to view this content, you must disable it on this site.

Aid to Israel, at the center of the electoral campaign

The announcement came on the day of the midterm elections, in which Republicans are vying for control of Congress. Trump linked the decision to criticism from Democratic sectors of US aid to Israel and mentioned Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, who opposes unconditional military assistance and maintains that funds should prioritize the needs of American citizens.

“It's a bad political argument,” Trump said of criticism of the $4 billion annually. The president stated that he did not want financial support for Israel to continue being used as a sign of “injustice” by his political adversaries.

Support for Israel has lost support among American voters since the start of the war in Gaza in 2023, especially among Democrats. A Quinnipiac University poll released in June indicated that 48% of voters and 66% of Democrats thought the United States was too supportive of Israel. In 2017, when that question was first asked, the percentages were 16% and 20%, respectively.

A relationship marked by war and the debate on assistance

The United States has committed tens of billions of dollars to military assistance to Israel over the past decades. The 2016 agreement, signed during the presidency of Barack Obama, established a commitment of 38 billion dollars for the period 2019-2028, equivalent to 3.8 billion annually.

Aid increased after the start of the war in Gaza. An academic study cited by the Associated Press estimated that the Joe Biden and Donald Trump administrations provided at least $21.7 billion in military assistance to Israel since October 2023.

Read alsoIran's supreme leader grants "powers" to the Government to negotiate an end to the war with the US.

The eventual interruption of funds would also have implications for the US defense industry, since a significant part of the aid goes to the purchase of weapons manufactured in the country. In addition, the assistance is part of Washington's security commitments in the Middle East, including those linked to the Camp David agreements between Israel and Egypt.

The announcement comes at a time of differences between Trump and Netanyahu over the war against Iran. While the American president has defended giving room for negotiations to end the conflict, the Israeli prime minister has pressed for new military action. Still, Trump presented the aid decision as an agreement between the two allies.

With information from REUTERS, EFE and AP.

Related keywords

The content you requested does not exist or is no longer available.