Israel needs to begin the move towards ending its reliance on U.S. military aid, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a meeting of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Sunday, amid disputes with the Trump administration over a wide range of national security issues.

“We receive close to $4 billion for arms. I think we will have to wean ourselves off of American security aid, just as we weaned ourselves off of American economic aid,” Netanyahu said. He added that, just as stopping economic aid helped spur economic growth in Israel, stopping military aid could help the defense sector.

The remark was made in the context of talks with the U.S. about the next 10-year aid package for Israel and was unprompted, his spokesman told Jewish Insider.

Netanyahu previously spoke of phasing out U.S. military aid after his disputes with former President Joe Biden and his administration about delivering arms to Israel last year. The Trump administration removed some of the restrictions, but there are new tensions between Jerusalem and Washington about a long list of diplomatic and security matters. 

Israel’s defense establishment reportedly prepared plans to attack Iranian nuclear facilities in the coming months, while the Trump administration is now engaged in extensive diplomacy with Iran in hopes of reaching a deal over its nuclear program. The Trump administration is open to working with Saudi Arabia on a civilian nuclear program, something that Israel has had misgivings about and was previously meant to be part of a normalization deal between Jerusalem and Riyadh.

Netanyahu announced plans last week to continue a new, intensive phase of the war in Gaza meant to defeat Hamas, while President Donald Trump is now focused on ending the war and securing a deal to free the remaining hostages. 

In addition, Qatar pushed Hamas to free Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, a New Jersey native, as a gesture to Trump as he visits Doha, the Gulf state’s capital, cutting Israel out of the deal. Jerusalem was also blindsided by the U.S. ceasefire with the Houthis last week, which did not include an end to attacks on Israel and was announced days after the Yemeni terrorist group shot a missile at Ben-Gurion Airport.

Netanyahu spoke on the phone with Trump to thank him for his effort to free Alexander, and the president said he is committed to continuing to work closely with Netanyahu, according to the Prime Minister’s Office readout. 

Netanyahu also met with Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who was in Israel for Alexander’s release on Monday, and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee. They discussed efforts by Witkoff to secure another ceasefire in exchange for the release of 10 more living hostages.

Israel is sending a team to Doha on Tuesday to continue hostage talks, including Netanyahu’s Diplomatic Advisor Ophir Falk, Hostage Coordinator Gal Hirsch and a Mossad representative whose name cannot be published.

“The prime minister clarified that negotiations can only take place under fire,” Netanyahu’s office said, referring to the plan to intensify the war in Gaza.

Netanyahu’s comment on weaning Israel off of American military aid also came at a time that the idea, once taboo, is gaining momentum on the Israeli right.

Likud lawmaker Amit Halevi, a member of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, has been holding subcommittee meetings to advance the idea and traveled to Washington earlier this year and held meetings on Capitol Hill to promote it.

“Biden or Trump, Witkoff or [former Secretary of State Tony] Blinken, there is one clear conclusion from the last two years,” Halevi said on Monday. “Israel needs to be independent and not reliant. [Israel is] already 77 years old, it’s time to be weaned. This is an important statement by Prime Minister Netanyahu.”

Israel currently receives $3.3 billion annually in U.S. foreign aid as part of a package that expires in 2028, and additional funding for missile defense and other security needs. The previous Memorandum of Understanding was signed in 2016, such that talks for the next one will likely begin next year.