PRESS RELEASE: Ending U.S. Military Assistance to Israel Abruptly Would Undermine American Security

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 3, 2026
Contact: Blake Johnson
bjohnson@jinsa.org

Washington, DC – The following is a statement from Michael Makovsky, President and CEO of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, regarding President Donald Trump’s remarks on the termination of the U.S.-Israel memorandum of understanding (MOU):

“President Trump’s statement today about foreign aid to Israel seemed to have caught everyone by surprise. We’re not aware of any agreement to end the aid this year; in fact, both countries were working on a new MOU to replace or follow the existing MOU that was agreed to by President Obama in 2016 and set to expire in 2028.

Israel has demonstrated its extraordinary value to American security—not simply as a recipient of U.S. military assistance, but as an ally that fights as an equal partner alongside American forces, shares intelligence, develops advanced military capabilities, hosts and protects U.S. personnel, and shoulders a growing share of the burden for regional security. The ongoing Iranian threat to American interests and the profound uncertainty facing the Middle East make Israel’s unique military capabilities more important to the United States than ever.

An abrupt end to U.S. military assistance to Israel, all of which is used to purchase American weapons from American companies and made by American workers, serves neither country’s economy nor security interests. There should be one final MOU of equal dollar value to the existing one.

JINSA has argued that the current military assistance framework should ultimately give way to a true strategic partnership built around mutual collaboration and tangible benefits to both countries. It should accelerate a new model of cooperation—one that better harnesses Israel’s military, technological, and intelligence capabilities, as well as the geographic location and security of its military bases, to strengthen American security. The question should not be how to end this relationship, but how to evolve it to meet the strategic challenges ahead.”

Report: Shifting the Center of Gravity: Transforming the U.S.-Israel Security Partnership

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