Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free
Your guide to what the 2024 US election means for Washington and the world
The US is suspending military aid to Ukraine as Donald Trump seeks to increase pressure on Volodymyr Zelenskyy to make concessions just days after the two leaders publicly sparred in the White House over peace talks with Russia.
Trump’s decision halts what has been a consistent supply of US military assistance including weapons to Kyiv since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine three years ago.
It comes amid growing tension between Trump and Zelenskyy, as the US president tries to push Ukraine to rapidly settle the conflict with Russia.
A White House official on Monday said: “The president has been clear that he is focused on peace. We need our partners to be committed to that goal as well. We are pausing and reviewing our aid to ensure that it is contributing to a solution.”
Trump’s move came after he renewed his attacks on Ukraine’s president on social media and in remarks to reporters at the White House on Monday afternoon, following the dramatic confrontation in the Oval Office on Friday.
“I just think he should be more appreciative, because this country has stuck with them through thick and thin,” Trump said of Zelenskyy on Monday. He also suggested Ukraine’s leader might be out of office if he fails to reach an accord with Moscow.
“It should not be that hard a deal to make,” the president added. “It could be made very fast. Now maybe somebody doesn’t want to make a deal, and if somebody doesn’t want to make a deal, I think that person won’t be around very long.”
After reports of the freeze emerged on Monday, US secretary of state Marco Rubio appeared to suggest it was tied to a wider diplomatic effort. “We want to get the Russians to a negotiating table. We want to explore whether peace is possible,” he said in a statement, without directly mentioning the suspension.
Trump’s decision will add urgency to efforts in many European capitals to bolster their own military support for Kyiv, because an extended pause in US assistance could give a big advantage to Russian forces on the battlefield.
The Institute for the Study of War in Washington on Monday night warned the decision to cut off US aid would “directly undermine President Trump’s stated goal of achieving a sustainable peace in Ukraine”.
“Russia would leverage the cessation of US aid to Ukraine to seize more territory in Ukraine and attempt to exhaust European support — the approach Putin has outlined in his theory of victory,” the ISW added.
Trump’s move comes after a weekend of intense diplomatic activity in Europe — including a summit hosted by UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and a month-long ceasefire plan proposed by Emmanuel Macron, president of France — to try to forge a settlement on better terms for Kyiv.
Trump’s decision to halt US aid to Ukraine comes on the eve of his address to a joint session of Congress — the first of his second term.
The president has been trying to agree a deal with Kyiv that would give the US access to Ukrainian critical minerals but the agreement — which American officials see as a pivotal to Washington’s backing for Ukraine — was postponed after the clash in the White House.
However, Brian Fitzpatrick, a Republican congressman from Pennsylvania, on Monday said he spoke to Andriy Yermak, Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, and believed the signing of the deal was imminent.
Fitzpatrick wrote on X ahead of the announcement: “We are 100% getting this train back on the tracks. This mineral deal will be signed in short order, which will lead to a strong long-term economic partnership between the United States and Ukraine, and which will ultimately and naturally lead to security assistance.”
“Europe will be required to step up and do its part, and there will be mandates for them to do just that,” he added.
Democrats immediately attacked the suspension of military aid and called for it to be reversed.
“Donald Trump’s decision to unilaterally pause funding for Ukraine is reckless, indefensible, and a direct threat to our national security,” said Brendan Boyle, a Democratic congressman from Pennsylvania.
“The world is watching, and we cannot afford to let Trump’s reckless actions undermine our commitment to our allies and democracy itself.”
Read the full article here
