US Military Aid to Israel to Be Cut in Half, Phased Out Over Five Years: Rep

U.S. military aid to Israel will not end next year as previously announced, but will instead be reduced by half and phased out over five years, according to a report published by Ynet on Monday. The United States is also expected to provide additional funding for the development of air defense systems, with the current annual allocation of $500 million set to increase by an as-yet-undetermined amount.

The report follows remarks made a week earlier by U.S. President Donald Trump, who said he had reached an agreement with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end American military assistance to Israel at the conclusion of the current year.

According to the latest report, Washington and Jerusalem are negotiating a new security assistance agreement that is expected to be signed before the inauguration of the new U.S. Congress in January. The negotiations are being conducted by representatives of Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the American side, and officials from Israel’s Defense Ministry and its embassy in Washington on the Israeli side.

US Military Aid to Be Reduced Over Five Years

Under the reported arrangement, American military assistance to Israel would be gradually reduced rather than terminated immediately. The proposed agreement would provide a total of $16.5 billion in Foreign Military Financing (FMF) over five years, compared with the $33 billion allocated over ten years under the previous arrangement. The new agreement would therefore cut the overall funding commitment in half and shorten the assistance period, with military aid scheduled to end entirely after five years.

Under the existing framework, Israel receives approximately $3.8 billion in annual American security assistance. Of that amount, $3.3 billion is allocated through the Foreign Military Financing program, which supports the purchase of weapons, military equipment, fighter jets, helicopters, and ammunition manufactured by American defense companies.

Funding for Missile Defense Systems Expected to Increase

The remaining $500 million in annual assistance is designated for cooperation on missile defense. This funding supports joint research, development, and production of active defense systems designed to intercept missiles and rockets, including Iron Dome, David’s Sling, and the Arrow missile defense system.

According to the report, while conventional military assistance would be phased out under the proposed agreement, Washington intends to maintain and expand its financial support for these joint missile defense programs. The exact amount of additional funding has not yet been determined.

The reported negotiations suggest that the United States and Israel are working toward a revised security assistance framework that would gradually reduce direct military financing while preserving cooperation on advanced missile defense technologies.