At a Glance

• President Trump said the US will stop providing annual aid to Israel starting in 2027.

• Washington will continue to sell arms to its close Middle East ally.

• The announcement came on Election Day for the midterms.

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the United States will end the $4 billion in aid it gives Israel each year from 2027 while continuing to sell weapons to the country.

Key Statements and Focus Area

• On the Nature of the Aid: "You can consider it barter. You can consider military aid or cash. Look, we give them $4 billion of things and money, and they don't need it." — Donald Trump, US President, to Fox News Channel.

• On Netanyahu's Role: "I was approached by Bibi Netanyahu, and we've been talking about it for a couple of years because it's a lot of money." — Donald Trump.

• Focus Area: The planned end of annual US aid to Israel and the shift to arms sales.

Trump made the remarks during a phone call with Fox News, saying Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had raised the idea with him and that the two have discussed it for roughly two years.

He argued Israel does not need the money and that it is a large sum for the US to spend. He also said US aid to Israel has become a talking point for Democratic candidates, citing Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed. Netanyahu's office had not immediately commented.

FYI

An academic study published last year found that the US, under the Biden and Trump administrations, provided at least $21.7 billion in military assistance to Israel after the Gaza war began in 2023.

Separately, the Costs of War project at Brown University's Watson School estimated that Washington spent roughly $10 billion more on security aid and operations in the broader Middle East over the previous two years.

Both reports relied largely on open-source material but are among the most comprehensive accountings of US military support to Israel.

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