Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu proposed gradually ending direct U.S. military aid to Israel over the next decade during talks with President Donald Trump at the White House, according to Israeli media reports on Wednesday.
Israel’s public broadcaster KAN, citing an unnamed political source, said the two leaders discussed the future of US military assistance to Tel Aviv during their closed-door talks.
According to the report, Netanyahu proposed gradually reducing US military aid until it is completely phased out within 10 years.
The outlet said Netanyahu suggested that US-Israeli cooperation on missile defense programs would continue, with the two countries shifting their focus from direct financial assistance to joint defense development projects.
Israel is the largest cumulative recipient of US foreign assistance since World War II.
According to the Congressional Research Service, Washington had provided Israel with about $174 billion in bilateral assistance and missile defense funding through May 2025, measured in nominal dollars.
Current military assistance is provided under a 2016 memorandum of understanding covering fiscal years 2019-2028, under which the US pledged $38 billion, subject to annual congressional appropriations.
The package includes $33 billion in Foreign Military Financing grants, averaging $3.3 billion annually, and $5 billion for joint missile defense programs, averaging $500 million annually.
Netanyahu has repeatedly called for reducing Israel’s dependence on direct US military aid. In interviews with The Economist in January and CBS’s 60 Minutes in May, the premier said he wanted Israel to eventually eliminate its reliance on US military financing while maintaining close defense cooperation, particularly on missile defense.
The White House did not immediately comment on the report.
Trump hosted Netanyahu at the White House on Tuesday for their first meeting since the Iran war and their eighth face-to-face meeting since the US president returned to office. The closed-door talks lasted about 90 minutes and focused on Iran, Gaza and other regional issues.
