According to the news of Israeli state television KAN, Trump's "unexpected" decision announced on the day of the midterm elections in the USA caused surprise in the Israeli Ministry of Defense and the army levels.
Speaking to KAN, an unnamed senior Israeli security official said, "We did not expect this statement. Especially today, we did not expect it at all. We are in constant dialogue with the Americans, but we can say that we were surprised." he said.
The Israeli official also noted that they will examine the possible military and financial consequences of the decision, which has not yet been officially notified to the relevant technical and expert authorities.
Israeli Finance Ministry was unaware of the decision
Yedioth Ahronot newspaper wrote that the Israeli Ministry of Finance was not aware of Trump's decision to cut $4 billion in aid and that the development was met with surprise in the ministry.
It has been claimed in security and economic circles in Tel Aviv that Trump's ultimate goal is to completely terminate the $3.8 billion security assistance that the United States provides to Tel Aviv every year and the bilateral security agreement that is valid until the end of 2028.
"Netanyahu has earned his reputation another failure"
Israeli opposition leader Yair Golan reacted to US President Trump's decision and said, "Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made another failure for his household." made his assessment.
Golan, in his statement on the US-based he said.
Pointing out that the decision came at a time when Israel's defense expenditures were at their peak, weapons stocks were being reinforced, and air defense systems were worn out after the Iranian attacks, Golan said:
"A responsible prime minister would not end American aid, on the contrary, he would fight to increase it. Netanyahu is deepening the security and economic crisis and puts Israel's future at risk."
Trump announced that $4 billion in aid to Israel will be stopped
In his statement, US President Trump stated that the $4 billion aid that the Washington administration will provide to Israel will be stopped and said, "We will not give money to Israel anymore." He used the expression.
Stating that it was agreed to cut aid by the end of the year, Trump added that the USA could support Israel in case of urgent need.
Referring to the billions of dollars of US aid transferred to the defense budget of the Tel Aviv administration on October 23, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, "Get used to it, this aid will not continue anymore. The problem is not Israel, but the fact that America has changed. This process is over and will end; now it is only a matter of time." He spoke as follows.
Security agreement between the USA and Israel
The security agreement, which was first signed between Israel and the USA in 1998, was renewed at approximately 10-year intervals.
Within the scope of the agreement reached, the USA agreed to provide military aid to Israel worth 21.3 billion dollars in the 10-year period in 1998, 32 billion dollars in the 10-year period in 2008, and 38 billion dollars in the 10-year period in the 2016 agreement.
The US administration allocated $33 billion of the $38 billion it committed under the agreement signed in 2016 for the purchase of military equipment and $5 billion for missile defense systems.
