Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
US President Donald Trump has announced that Washington will end its annual financial aid to Israel after this year, claiming he has reached an agreement with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stop the USD 4 billion assistance package.
However, Trump said the US would continue selling weapons to Israel and would provide assistance if required, signalling a possible shift in the decades-old military relationship between the two allies.
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Making the surprise announcement on Election Day, as Americans voted in crucial midterm elections, Trump said Israel no longer needed the financial assistance. He also suggested the move would weaken a criticism frequently used by left-wing Democrats against Republicans over Washington’s support for Israel.
“Now, as far as paying Israel, Bibi Netanyahu and I have made a deal that we give Israel USD 4 billion a year, and we made a deal months ago that we’re stopping. 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,” Trump told Fox News’ ‘Fox & Friends’.
Trump did not explain how the funding would be stopped by December, given that the existing US-Israel Memorandum of Understanding, which provides USD 3.8 billion in annual military assistance, remains in effect until September 2028.
The announcement comes amid growing criticism of Israel in the US, particularly among Democrats, over its military operations in Gaza following the October 2023 Hamas-led attack. Opinion polls have also indicated declining public support for Israel, with an increasing number of Americans believing Washington provides excessive assistance to its Middle East ally.
A Quinnipiac University poll conducted in June found that 48 per cent of US voters and 66 per cent of Democrats believed their country was too supportive of Israel. When the question was first asked in 2017, the corresponding figures were 16 per cent and 20 per cent.
Trump specifically referred to Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan, who has opposed unconditional military assistance to Israel. El-Sayed, if elected, would become the first Muslim to serve in the US Senate.
“Because they (Israel) don’t need it, and because why should we suffer the slings from lunatics like an El-Sayed when they don’t need it? It’s a bad talking point,” Trump said.
The announcement also comes as Trump’s Republican Party faces the possibility of losing control of the House of Representatives in the midterm elections. Democrats have increasingly challenged traditional US support for Israel, with several candidates critical of Israeli policies winning party primaries.
Criticism has also emerged within Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, with some supporters questioning Israel’s influence on Washington’s decision to engage in the conflict with Iran. The war, which has continued for more than eight months since joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran, has pushed up American fuel prices and affected Trump’s approval ratings.
The timing of Trump’s announcement also raised questions among analysts, particularly amid speculation about the possibility of another major joint US-Israeli military strike against Iran.
“The curious issue is timing. Why did President Trump announce it on Election Day? And why did he announce it amidst speculation that a major joint US-Israeli military strike against Iran may be days away?” said Jon Alterman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
ISRAELI OPPOSITION QUESTIONS NETANYAHU
Trump’s announcement triggered criticism from within Israel, with Gadi Eisenkot, leader of a rival political bloc seeking to remove Netanyahu from power, questioning how the decision was communicated.
“The fact that the security establishment, along with Israeli citizens, is learning about a change in the strategic relationship framework through the media highlights just how much Benjamin Netanyahu‘s conduct poses a genuine danger,” Eisenkot wrote on X.
He added that Israel could no longer rely on Netanyahu and called for his replacement.
Netanyahu had indicated last month that Israel would gradually reduce its dependence on American financial assistance, acknowledging that Washington’s position had changed.
“If you think we’re going to continue receiving what I secured twice, and that’s tens of billions of dollars in American aid for the defense budget, prepare yourselves and get used to the fact that it won’t happen because America has changed,” Netanyahu said in an interview with Israeli television.
Meanwhile, Republican Congressman Don Bacon questioned the manner in which the announcement was made, saying the Israeli government had not been informed.
Congress passed legislation in 2020 authorising military assistance to Israel, although annual appropriations bills are still required to release the funds. Separately, a provision in the proposed 2027 National Defense Authorization Act seeks to deepen US-Israeli defence technology cooperation, even as Washington considers reducing direct financial assistance.
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
