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President Donald Trump ordered a halt to all U.S. military aid to Ukraine on Monday, following a heated Oval Office confrontation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The pause will continue until Ukrainian officials demonstrate a "good-faith commitment to peace negotiations," according to a White House official.
"The President has been clear that he is focused on peace," the official stated. "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."
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been directed to implement the pause, which will stop shipments of all U.S. military equipment not already in Ukraine. This includes weapons currently in Europe destined for the war-torn country.
The directive comes just days after a contentious meeting between Trump and Zelensky in the Oval Office on Friday. The encounter reportedly turned hostile when Zelensky attempted to discuss security guarantees beyond a mineral rights deal that was expected to be signed that day.
"This is not permanent termination of aid, it's a pause," a Trump administration official told Fox News. "The orders are going out right now."
The U.S. has provided Ukraine with approximately $119 billion in financial support since Russia's February 2022 invasion, including $64 billion in military aid, according to the Germany-based Kiel Institute for the World Economy. This far exceeds the European Union's contribution of $53 billion in military support.
Trump has repeatedly criticized the lack of reciprocal benefits from Ukraine. Following Sunday's interview where Zelensky told Fox News that "an agreement to end the war is still very, very far away," Trump expressed his frustration on Truth Social.
"This is the worst statement that could have been made by Zelenskyy, and America will not put up with it for much longer!" Trump wrote. He added that Zelensky "doesn't want there to be Peace as long as he has America's backing."
The aid pause signals a significant policy shift, with sources indicating it represents "a larger pivot away from conflicts in Europe and towards building alliances in Latin America and the Western Hemisphere." Trump has specifically mentioned Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, Argentinian President Javier Milei, and Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado Parisca as potential new beneficiaries.
