Trump says Israel's $4 billion a year in US aid is ending, but a signed deal promises $3.8 billion through 2028

President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the United States will stop giving Israel about $4 billion a year by the end of 2026. He spoke by phone to Fox News's "Fox & Friends" while voters were casting midterm ballots. NBC News, CBC (carrying Reuters reporting), the Associated Press and Al Jazeera all report that it is not clear which funding he meant or how it would be stopped.

What he said

According to the transcript passages those outlets quote, Trump said: "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 added: "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 said Netanyahu raised the idea, quoting the prime minister as saying "I think it would be appropriate if we do not receive aid." In the AP's account he described the aid as "barter," saying "You can consider military aid or cash," and that Israel will still be able to buy American arms. He also gave a political reason, calling the aid "a bad talking point" used by Democrats and naming Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, who has opposed unconditional military aid to Israel.

The Jerusalem Post reports that the hosts pressed him several times on whether he meant military aid, cash or weapons deliveries, and that he did not specify.

What the official framework says

The Congressional Research Service, in its report RL33222 (last updated May 28, 2025, so it predates today's remarks), describes the third 10-year memorandum of understanding, signed September 14, 2016, covering fiscal years 2019 to 2028. The United States pledged, "subject to congressional appropriation," $38 billion: $33 billion in Foreign Military Financing (FMF) grants plus $5 billion for missile defense. CRS quotes the MOU as saying both governments "jointly commit to respect the FMF levels specified in this MOU, and not to seek changes to the FMF levels for the duration of this understanding."

That works out to $3.3 billion in FMF and $500 million in missile defense a year, or $3.8 billion, the same split NBC reports. CRS notes the fiscal 2024 appropriations act funded exactly that, and the fiscal 2025 continuing resolution kept FMF at $3.3 billion.

Item	Amount	Source
Annual aid Trump cited	about $4 billion	Trump, Fox & Friends, Nov. 3
MOU annual FMF grants	$3.3 billion	CRS RL33222
MOU annual missile defense	$0.5 billion	CRS RL33222
MOU 10-year total, FY2019-FY2028	$38 billion	CRS RL33222
Military aid since Oct. 2023, at least	$21.7 billion over two years	Study cited by AP and NBC (not an official figure)

Our arithmetic, not a government figure: if aid stopped at the end of calendar 2026, the MOU would still have two fiscal years (2027 and 2028) left to run. At $3.8 billion a year that is $7.6 billion on paper. We could not find a source in this run saying how much of the fiscal 2027 money has been appropriated or spent.

The $4 billion Trump cited is also not the MOU figure. CBC and NBC both note the gap, and the AP notes Trump's own phrase, "things and money." Whether he meant the MOU grants, the missile-defense funds, or something broader is unknown.

Reactions on the record

Israel's government has not confirmed the claim. NBC reports that Netanyahu's office declined to comment, and CBC reports that neither the White House nor Netanyahu's office answered Reuters. Al Jazeera says the State Department did not immediately respond to its request for comment. We found no State Department statement in this run.

Opposition figures have commented. Gadi Eisenkot, who leads the rival bloc after last week's inconclusive Israeli election, wrote that the defense establishment and citizens "learned of a change in the strategic relationship framework through the media." Yair Golan, head of the Democrats party, said ending aid would be "a severe blow to Israel's security," as reported by JTA and NBC. JTA also reports that Israeli financial and military officials voiced surprise and concern anonymously to Hebrew-language media.

On Congress, we did not find an on-the-record statement from a sitting senator or House member in the coverage we read, and we are not characterizing any member's position. Former Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene wrote on X that the announcement would not change today's election results, per Al Jazeera. What is documented is the voting backdrop: in July the House defeated, 314 to 104, an amendment by Rep. Thomas Massie to cut off aid to Israel, with nearly half of Democrats in favor (Al Jazeera). In April, dozens of senators, nearly all Democrats, backed a failed motion to block certain weapons sales to Israel (JTA).

Al Jazeera's Kimberly Halkett noted that Congress appropriates the money and that Trump cannot end it unilaterally. Thomas Warrick of the Atlantic Council told Al Jazeera he expects aid to be phased out during 2027 rather than by the end of 2026, because some missile-defense and counter-drone programs cannot easily move to foreign military sales.

What is not known

• Which funding streams Trump means, and whether the $4 billion includes the $500 million for missile defense.
• Whether the MOU has been amended or terminated. CBC says it runs to September 2028 and Trump gave no mechanism.
• Whether an agreement with Netanyahu exists in writing. Only Trump has described it, and Netanyahu's office declined to comment.
• Whether the administration will ask Congress to change fiscal 2027 appropriations, or simply not spend funds.
• Whether the plan changes after the midterm results.

Markets

NBC reported that Brent crude fell 3% to $101 after the comments, its lowest in more than three weeks, then recovered to $103 around noon ET. It attributed the move to traders reading the remarks as a sign the Iran war could end without escalation, and noted oil had already had its biggest one-day drop in three months on Monday after Trump said he did not plan to attack Iran after the midterms. That is NBC's reading of the oil move, not a measured link to the aid remarks.

Polling is part of the backdrop: a June Quinnipiac poll found 48% of voters and 66% of Democrats say the US is too supportive of Israel, up from 16% and 20% when first asked in 2017 (CBC, Al Jazeera).

Sources: NBC News; CBC/Reuters; AP via PBS; Al Jazeera; JTA; Jerusalem Post; Congressional Research Service RL33222. We did not receive a response from the White House or State Department. This is news reporting, not investment advice.