Overview:
The US paused weapon shipments to Ukraine after an analysis by the Pentagon of foreign spending and weapons stockpiles. The decision, which was authorized by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, was not authorized by President Donald Trump or senior White House officials. Despite a low stockpile of weapons, Trump has reversed the halt from Hegseth to resume weapon shipments.
Weapons shipment
The Trump administration announced last week that they were pausing weapons shipments to Ukraine. This decision followed an analysis of its foreign spending and weapons stock.
The decision was made to put “America first,” according to White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly.
These weapons were promised by the Biden Administration but reflect an emphasis from the Trump administration to reduce foreign spending.
Secretary of Defense
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth authorized the move without informing the White House, according to White House sources. President Donald Trump suggested, when the move was announced, that he was not responsible for the decision.
“I don’t know, why don’t you tell me?” President Trump said when asked about who authorized the pause.
This was the second time this year that Hegseth issued a pause on US weapons to Ukraine. Notably, there was no prior notice to White House officials.
The White House
Other White House officials, including President Trump’s national security advisor, Marco Rubio, were not aware of the decision.
Ukraine’s defense ministry “has not received any official notifications about the suspension or revision of the delivery schedules for the agreed defense assistance.”
“We have achieved a lot together with America, and we support all efforts to stop the killings. We aim to restore just, lasting, and dignified peace,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on X.
President Trump announced the weapons shipments would resume despite Hegseth signing off on a pause.
Stocks of Weapons Found to be Low
The Pentagon analysis found that the stocks of weapons previously promised to Ukraine were low.
The Defense Department did not provide details on which specific items were low. However, spokesperson Sean Parnell said, “America’s military has never been more ready and more capable.”
The US has previously aided Ukraine with air defense systems, drones, rockets, among other military supplies. Billions of dollars’ worth of aid have been given, leading to a dwindling supply.
The past week has offered some of the largest aerial assaults from the Russian military on Ukrainian soil.
Despite the low supply, President Trump pledged to help Ukrainians by resuming shipments.
“I will say this,” President Trump said. “The Ukrainians, whether you think it’s unfair that we gave all that money or not, they were very brave, because somebody had to operate that stuff.”
