DONALD Trump has paused all US military aid to Ukraine for the foreseeable future, the White House has confirmed.
This comes just days after Trump and President Volodymyr Zelensky had a huge bust up inside the Oval Office over the devastating war in eastern Europe.
The US has now paused aid to the war-torn country until Zelensky’s government shows a commitment to peace negotiations, a senior Trump administration official told Fox News.
The official said: “This is not permanent termination of aid, it’s a pause.”
Trump’s move might have an immediate impact on Ukrainian stockpiles, though some experts believe the country has enough weapons to fight until the summer at its current level.
It will affect all American military equipment not delivered to Ukraine, including weapons in transit and currently in Poland.
The directive also suspends funding for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which uses US monies to purchase new gear.
On Monday, Trump said that Zelensky “will not be around very long” unless he agrees to America’s terms on a peace deal.
He told reporters at the White House: “It should not be that hard a deal to make.
“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.
“That person will not be listened to very long.”
It comes just hours after the US President blasted Zelensky in a Truth Social post saying “this guy doesn’t want there to be peace”.
Trump was responding to a quote from the Ukrainian leader in which he said an end to the conflict with Russia is still “very, very far away”.
The Republican firebrand described his quotes as the “worst statement that could have been made”.
His post continued: “America will not put up with it for much longer.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”How Trump & Zelensky’s fiery clash was caused by two ‘pivotal moments'” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6369464129112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]“It is what I was saying, this guy doesn’t want there to be peace as long as he has America’s backing and, Europe, in the meeting they had with Zelensky, stated flatly that they cannot do the job without the US.
“Probably not a great statement to have been made in terms of a show of strength against Russia.
“What are they thinking?”
It comes as…
- Trump is reportedly drawing up plans to give Russia relief from damaging sanctions
- Trump accused Zelensky of “gambling with World War Three” during their fiery White House clash
- Ukraine confirmed huge Russian missile strike on training base on Monday
- European oil giant demands ban on refuelling US warships after ‘biggest s**tshow’ clash between Trump and Zelensky
- A top Trump official suggests Zelensky may have to quit as President of Ukraine to get peace talks back on track
- UK and France will lead new ‘coalition of the willing’ for peace in Ukraine, PM Keir Starmer says
Trump’s right-hand man in the White House Elon Musk also responded to the post as he said: “Zelensky wants a forever war, a never-ending graft meat grinder.”
The Tesla chief followed it up by simply saying: “This is evil.”
Meanwhile, US Vice President JD Vance accused Zelensky of showing a “lack of respect” and “a certain sense of entitlement” during his visit to Washington.
He also argued that the rare minerals deal – meant to have been signed by the two presidents on Friday – was the best approach to ensure a long-term conclusion to the war.
He told Fox News: “If you want real security guarantees, if you want to actually ensure that Vladimir Putin does not invade Ukraine again, the very best security guarantee is to give Americans economic upside in the future of Ukraine.
“That is a way better security guarantee than 20,000 troops from some random country that hasn’t fought a war in 30 or 40 years.”
UKRAINE & UK REACTIONS
Ukraine showed signs of buckling in the face of intense US pressure today as Trump suspended current military aid to Kyiv.
Andriy Yermak, Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff, told a key US Republican lawmaker that the rare metals deal demanded by the White House will now be signed “in short order”.
A prominent Ukrainian MP Oleksiy Goncharenko also today called on Zelensky to make a humbling apology to Donald Trump to avert “catastrophe” over the American leader’s halting of military supplies.
Resolve the issue with the Trump administration,” he urged the Kyiv president in the wake of the Oval Office bust-up.
“If [he] wants [you] to apologise – apologise.
“What difference does this apology make if our task is not to lose the war and not lose people?”
On the end of military aid, Goncharenko said: “This is a catastrophe”.
But he urged the Zelensky government to “work” and seek to improve contacts with the US government.
“Turn off emotions – turn on the mind,” he said.
“The reality is that now the US president is Trump.
“We are completely dependent on the US and we need to play with Trump, not against him.
“We already have enough enemies, let’s at least not lose friends.”
But he also urged: “We need a specific plan: how can we survive without US help?
“God forbid that it will not be needed, but it is necessary.”
Goncharenko said: “In principle, the situation is not lost yet.
“We can still get out of it with not such great losses as it seems.
“But for this we need to stop the fight for ratings and switch to the fight for the country.
“We need to achieve peace, not capitulation.”
Ukrainians in America were left stunned by Trump’s U-turn on military aid, labelling it a “slap” on President Zelensky.
“I felt that Ukraine was slapped in the face. And I felt that slap. I felt that slap as a Ukrainian American,” said Father Richard Jendras, a priest in St Mary’s Ukrainian church in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
“When I watched the video, I was absolutely horrified,” he told Yahoo News.
“I felt the same way that I had felt three years ago when the invasion happened in Ukraine.”
The UK government has also reacted to Trump’s military pause, saying it remains steadfast in its support for Ukraine.
A spokesperson said in a statement this morning: “We remain absolutely committed to securing a lasting peace in Ukraine and are engaging with key allies in support of this effort.
“It is the right thing to do, and is in our interest to do so.”
The statement goes on to detail how the UK has strengthened Ukrainian military capabilities by committing to deliver £3 billion per year in military aid for “as long as it takes” and a £2.26 billion loan using sanctioned Russian assets.
The spokesperson added: “In addition, we’ve set up a partnership with Ukraine that allows them to use £1.6bn of UK export finance to buy 5,000 air defence missile manufactured in Belfast, putting Ukraine in the strongest possible position for peace.”
Angela Rayner has also responded to the US’ aid pause by saying it is a “matter for the US President” but Britain would be “engaged with key allies” over their decision.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, meanwhile, said Trump’s decision was “worrying” and that Britain and Europe must “re-arm much faster”.
FIGHT HOUSE
Trump’s ongoing battle with Ukraine reached fever pitch last week when Zelensky sat down with the President and his VP.
They held a lengthy conversation in the Oval Office before all hell broke loose as Vance and Zelensky argued before Trump berated the Ukrainian leader.
The raging US President gave his heroic counterpart a humiliating dressing down and told him to come back when he wanted peace.
A snarling Trump sparked global chaos by booting Zelensky out of the White House over the blistering row.
The pair were also meant to sign a deal for Ukraine to hand over a large chunk of its mineral wealth as payback for billions of dollars of wartime aid from the US.
Today, Trump told Zelensky to be “more appreciative” as he gave a key update on the US-Ukraine minerals deal.
He suggested further details on the agreement could come as soon as tomorrow.
Trump has already announced he has “something big” coming on Tuesday.
Further news from Washington which is set to test Kyiv‘s resolve is how the Trump administration is reportedly drawing up plans to give Russia relief from their damaging sanctions.
The White House hope by easing the economical hurdles imposed on the Kremlin it will help to strengthen international ties, a US official and another person familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The White House has reportedly asked the state and treasury departments to draft up a list of sanctions that could be swiftly eased.
US officials are expected to then discuss these with fellow Russian representatives in the coming days, the sources said.