In a remarkable development that may redraw the nature of the financial and military relationship between Washington and Tel Aviv, American reports revealed a move within Congress to end American military aid to Israel, with the support of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who recently announced his desire to reduce dependence on American support and end it completely.
According to a report by journalist Tomer Almogor on the Israeli “N12” website, Netanyahu had stated during an interview with CBS last month that he wanted to “reduce American financial support to zero,” stressing that he wanted to start doing so “from now.”
The report indicated that this idea began to turn into practical steps, after the Washington Post newspaper revealed that Republican Congressman Marilyn Statsman submitted a draft resolution calling on the United States to draft a new memorandum of understanding with Israel under which it would end direct military aid.
Statsman met with Netanyahu in Jerusalem last week, where he presented him with a draft proposal that stipulates stopping the provision of free American military aid to Israel.
According to the report, Statsman said that Netanyahu responded after seeing the draft by saying: “I liked this direction,” adding: “This is the direction I have wanted to go in for a long time.”
Netanyahu was also quoted as saying during the meeting: “We want to stand on our feet,” noting that the meeting lasted about 45 minutes and Republican Congressman Ibrahim Hamadeh also participated in it.
Stutzman, a Republican state representative from Indiana, is known for his consistent support of Israel.
Only a week after the meeting, Statesman submitted the draft resolution to Congress, calling on the US administration to prepare a new memorandum of understanding that would end the $3.8 billion annual aid that Israel receives from the United States.
Under the proposal, Israel will purchase the American weapons it needs directly, instead of obtaining free American funding, while other forms of American support will continue according to the proposed arrangements.
The proposal is based on the fact that the current 10-year memorandum of understanding signed between the United States and Israel, which provides for $38 billion in direct security assistance, expires in 2028.
Although the initiative has an advertising character at this stage, the report described it as the most prominent step of its kind within Congress by a lawmaker known for his support for Israel. It also reflects a growing state of dissatisfaction among American voters from both the Republican and Democratic parties regarding the amount of support that Tel Aviv receives from Washington.
The report added that earlier this week, Netanyahu sent a letter of support to Statesman, in which he expressed his support for the new initiative.
The letter stated that Israel “appreciates the financial component of the security assistance” it has received from the United States over the past years, “but the time has come to move from a state receiving aid to a partner state.”
For his part, Statsman stressed that the goal of the project is not to harm Israel, but rather to “convey a message to the world that Israel does not depend solely on America.”
He also believed that this step might contribute to improving the situation of anti-Semitism within the United States, considering that relations between the two countries are “changing and developing.”
Netanyahu had said in a previous interview with CBS: “I want to reduce American financial support to zero, that is, the financial component of security cooperation between us. We get $3.8 billion annually, and I think it is time to get rid of what remains of security aid.”
When asked about the timetable he preferred for implementing this, he replied: “Let us start now and implement it over the next decade, but I want to start now, and I do not want to wait for the next Congress.”
The report indicated that Netanyahu repeated the same message during an interview he conducted yesterday with CNBC.
This move comes in light of a noticeable decline in the level of popular support for Israel within the United States, as the issue of military aid has become a basic material used by critics of Israel who portray it as a country that benefits from American taxpayers’ money to finance wars that only serve its interests.
In this context, a poll conducted by the Pew Research Center in recent months showed that the percentage of Americans who hold a negative view of Israel rose to 60%, compared to 53% last year, a phenomenon that now extends across various partisan trends in the United States.
While the proposal is presented as a step toward a more balanced partnership between Washington and Tel Aviv, it simultaneously reflects deeper shifts within American public opinion regarding the nature of support granted to Israel and the limits of its continuity in the coming years.
