Lindsey Graham quickly embraces Netanyahu’s desire to ‘taper’ off US military aid over next decade

JTA – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said for the first time that he wants to “taper off” United States (US) military aid to Israel over the next decade until it reaches zero. 

The comments, made to The Economist on Thursday, 8 January, in Jerusalem, follow Netanyahu’s suggestion in May that it was time for Israel to “wean ourselves off American security aid”. He stopped short of suggesting a full stop in aid at the time. 

“I want to taper off the military aid within the next 10 years,” said Netanyahu. “And that’s not saying that I don’t want to fight for the allegiance and support of the American people, I do. You’d have to be crazy not to.” 

The comments found a receptive audience with South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Israel supporter and Trump ally, who voiced support for the prime minister’s calls to taper off US aid and said it could be done sooner. 

“I will always appreciate allies who are trying to be more self-sufficient and believe that, given what the prime minister said, we need not wait 10 years,” wrote Graham in a post on X. “The billions in taxpayer dollars that would be saved by expediting the termination of military aid to Israel will and should be ploughed back into the US military, which is the best in the world and in great demand.” 

The comments come as broad swaths of the American public have become increasingly disillusioned with the federal government’s support for Israel over the course of the war in Gaza. Support for Israel among Democrats has plummeted. Within the Republican Party, waning support for Israel alongside the recent normalisation of antisemitic voices has fuelled anxiety about the GOP’s (Grand Old Party’s) future posture towards the country. 

When asked about Israel’s “dramatic decline in support in the Republican Party”, Netanyahu spoke broadly about “a challenge to traditional allegiances” within the US. 

Speaking to The Economist on Thursday in Jerusalem, Netanyahu said that while “we very deeply appreciate the military aid that America has given us over the years”, he believed that the country had “come of age”. 

When asked by The Economist’s Editor-in-Chief Zanny Minton Beddoes to confirm that he wanted to “taper it off to zero”, Netanyahu replied, “Yes.” 

Netanyahu appeared to suggest that he wouldn’t seek a full renewal of Israel’s 10-year memorandum of understanding with the US, which gives Israel $3.8 billion (R62.3 billion) annually and is scheduled to be renegotiated in 2028. 

Graham said US support for Israel should be “recouped as soon as possible” to help meet US President Donald Trump’s military budget goals, adding that he would submit a proposal to “dramatically expedite the timetable”.