Update(1858ET): There's been contradictory reports all day, and at one point in the afternoon a firm Trump denial, but Monday evening Bloomberg is reporting that the US has paused all military aid to Ukraine amid the tit-for-tat open feuding with Zelensky.
"President Donald Trump ordered a pause to all military aid to Ukraine, turning up the heat on Volodymyr Zelenskiy just days after an Oval Office blowup with the Ukrainian president left the support of his country’s most important ally in doubt," the publication writes in a breaking story.
"The US is pausing all current military aid to Ukraine until Trump determines the country’s leaders demonstrate a good-faith commitment to peace, according to a senior Defense Department official, who asked not to be identified discussing private deliberations," Bloomberg adds.
For now this is only the usual anonymous official, and while it could be premature (as meetings "mulling" a stoppage take place), it sure looks like that's where things are headed.
"The official said all US military equipment not currently in Ukraine would be paused, including weapons in transit on aircraft and ships or waiting in transit areas in Poland," the report notes further.
If so, this marks a monumental shift in Washington policy over the last three years of war in Eastern Europe.
* * *
Update (1455ET): And in the latest turn of events... the Trump administration has allegedly halted the financing of new weapons sales to Ukraine, and may freeze weapons shipments from US stockpiles, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing current and former US officials.
Trump, however, has denied this...
Trump on suspending military aid to Ukraine: 'I haven't even talked about that right now'
— Danny Kemp (@dannyctkemp) March 3, 2025
While the financing was halted in recent weeks as part of the Trump administration's freeze on foreign aid, however the move to potentially shut down arms transfers comes after last week's contentious meeting between President Trump, VP JD Vance, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House.
Ukraine is able to get weapons from the U.S. through several means, including Foreign Military Financing, which provides loans and grants for nations to buy weapons from U.S. defense companies, and the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which allows the Pentagon to buy weapons for Kyiv but is currently out of funds. However, presidential drawdown authority, which allows the Defense Department to pull directly from its own stockpiles, has been the most significant tool for arming Ukraine.
On Monday, the White House is holding a meeting to consider suspending shipments using the drawdown authority, a congressional aide and a second person familiar with the matter said. -WSJ
That said, the shutdown of financing new weapons sales began before Friday's contentious meeting - during which Ukraine and the US were going to sign a framework agreement for a mineral rights deal that would have equated to de-facto boots on the ground, which would have dissuaded Russia from attacking (since the US would have to respond).
Meanwhile, Ukraine has just 90 days of weapons and other supplies to keep fighting Russia at its current pace, according to the report, which suggests that European allies could 'make up for some of the potential shortfall.'
If the U.S. shutdown persists, Ukraine would lose its supply of some sophisticated weapons, including advanced air-defense systems, surface-to-surface ballistic missiles, navigation systems and long-range rocket artillery. The U.S. is the sole producer of some systems, including Army Tactical Missile Systems or ATACMs, and M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or Himars, which give the Ukrainians the ability to strike far behind Russian lines.
Once those U.S. supplies run out, Ukraine’s ability to conduct longer-range strikes, and to protect its own rear positions, would suffer, officials and analysts say.
"Europe can step in to meet a fair amount of Ukraine’s need for artillery ammunition when combined with munitions already shipped by the U.S. early this year," said Michael Kofmann, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, adding "The challenges will be more visible as we get into summer."
* * *
Update(1355ET):
Trump continues to talk shit on Truth Social - posting: "Europe has spent more money buying Russian Oil and Gas than they have spent on defending Ukraine - BY FAR!"
* * *
You can support ZeroHedge with the purchase of a high-quality, sharp, ZeroHedge Multitool.
Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back.
* * *
President Trump moments ago reacted fiercely to fresh statements of Ukrainian President Zelensky, who said that he sees the end of the war with Russia as being "very, very far away." Zelensky had even added that he expects to keep receiving American support despite last Friday's blow-up at the White House, wherein VP Vance charged that he is ungrateful.
"I think our relationship (with the U.S.) will continue, because it’s more than an occasional relationship," Zelensky said late Sunday. "I believe that Ukraine has a strong enough partnership with the United States of America" to keep aid flowing. These were some of the remarks featured in the Associated Press article highlighted in a Truth Social post by Trump on Monday.
Trump warned in response, "This is the worst statement that could have been made by Zelensky, and America will not put with it for much longer." He added in reference to Zelensky that "this guy doesn't want there to be Peace as long as he has America's backing...".
This comes amid various unconfirmed reports that Trump will discuss halting military aid to Ukraine in a meeting with key advisors on Monday. Given Trump's lashing out at Zelensky this morning, this certainly does look accurate.
Here's also what the NY Times reported Friday:
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine entered the White House for a meeting with President Donald Trump on Friday knowing that the flow of weapons and military hardware from the United States to his country had essentially stopped.
By the time he left, after a televised argument between the two leaders, the situation appeared even more dire.
As the two men met, it had been 50 days since the Pentagon had announced a new package of weapons to Ukraine and the new administration had said little about providing any more.
A Trump administration official said later on Friday that all U.S. aid to Ukraine — including the final shipments of ammunition and equipment authorized and paid for during the Biden administration — could be canceled imminently.
This scenario is clearly getting closer and closer, especially given Zelensky's continued open defiance, issuing statements critical of the White House while appearing 'tough' for the European cameras.
Meanwhile...
INTEL: Trump is meeting with his aides today to discuss canceling U.S. military aid to Ukraine.
— Polymarket (@Polymarket) March 3, 2025
Odds he cuts all military aid have shot up to 25%. pic.twitter.com/Bil1WYNDOU
Trump's Director of National Intelligence is also piling on in a fresh interview, highlighting the anti-democratic nature of the Zelensky regime...
Trump's Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard:
— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 3, 2025
Elections are canceled in Ukraine. Churches are being shut down. Political opposition is silenced and there is total government control of the media. pic.twitter.com/ALKqZon6lO
And more recent fightin words from Zelensky:
Reporter: Senator Graham said that perhaps you should consider resigning.
— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 3, 2025
Zelensky: I can give him the citizenship of Ukraine. He will become a citizen of our country, and then his voice will gain weight. pic.twitter.com/7efBH0nazm
Elon Musk within a couple hours after Trump's initial post chimed in on X:
Zelensky wants a forever war, a never-ending graft meat grinder. This is evil. https://t.co/FVaEkIm7Gq
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 3, 2025
* * *
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has remained defiant in the wake of Friday's explosive confrontation with President Trump and Vice President JD Vance in the Oval Office. He said from London Sunday that he will not apologize that that his country's freedom is "not for sale".
He acknowledged that the public spat "didn’t bring anything positive or additional to us as partner" - however he also said "This relationship will continue because this is more than a relationship in one moment."
"If you don’t have an end to the war and you don’t have security guarantees, no one is able to control a ceasefire," he told reporters while preparing to leave the UK, following a meeting with European leaders to agree on continued support for Ukraine.
Financial Times has underscored that Zelensky is not only rejecting calls from the US to apologize to Trump and Vance, but he's now openly pushing back against ceasefire. The Ukrainian leader...
rejected calls for Ukraine to agree an immediate ceasefire in its war with Russia, saying it would be “failure for everyone” if a cessation of hostilities were not accompanied by detailed security guarantees.
"If you don’t have an end to the war and you don’t have security guarantees, no one is able to control a ceasefire," Zelensky stressed in these latest remarks.
He still proclaimed that he remains "ready" to sign a US-Ukraine minerals deal, confirming that his aides are now speaking to Trump's team about ways to move forward on it.
Zelensky says he is prepared to sign a mineral rights deal with the US and thinks the relationship with Washington can be salvaged. —NBC
But the mood from the White House appears to be one of willingness to cut Zelensky off altogether. There are reports that President Trump is mulling cutting off all continuing defense aid to Ukraine.
Administration officials have sought to clarify that this was no ambush which played out before media cameras on Friday, but that Zelensky was rude and confrontational the whole time, and never satisfied with what the US was providing to Ukraine.
National Security Advisor Michael Waltz told the Sunday news shows that President Trump "was frustrated and angry because it’s unclear if Zelensky truly wants to stop the fighting. The President and VP said enough is enough."
Walz added: "This [lecturing] was the wrong approach, wrong time, and the wrong president to try to do this kind of a thing. This is not Joe Biden. The entire world saw that, crystal clear."
Waltz tells what happened after the fight in the Oval Office - the Ukrainian team was in tears, but Zelensky stayed argumentative
— Tymofiy Mylovanov (@Mylovanov) March 2, 2025
Q: After the press left, you and Rubio told Zelensky he should leave the White House?
Waltz: We had a meeting, and advised the president that after… pic.twitter.com/JoN2zEGP8G
And this segment from Walz's account in a Fox News interview is hugely revealing:
Q: How did Zelensky react after press left? Was he surprised?
Waltz: No. His team was. His ambassador, and adviser were practically in tears, wanting this to move forward. But Zelensky was still argumentative. I said “Mr. President, time is not on your side here, on the battlefield, and in terms of the world situation. And most importantly, USAID, and the taxpayers' tolerance, is not unlimited”.
Waltz: I think Zelensky is used to hearing that “as long as it takes” and blank check from Biden.
He has not gotten the memo that this is a new sheriff in town. This is a new president, and we are determined to take a new approach towards peace.
European leaders are meanwhile trying to absorb the blowback and fallout, now talking about an alternative peace plan backed by "boots on the ground and planes in the air". UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is leading the way on plans for a 'stabilization force' to back a Ukraine ceasefire, likely involving France - and which the Europeans hope Trump can sign on to. But the Kremlin is likely to immediately reject it, given the Western 'boots on the ground' aspect to the plan.
* * *
Update(1858ET): There’s been contradictory reports all day, and at one point in the afternoon a firm Trump denial, but Monday evening Bloomberg is reporting that the US has paused all military aid to Ukraine amid the tit-for-tat open feuding with Zelensky.
“President Donald Trump ordered a pause to all military aid to Ukraine, turning up the heat on Volodymyr Zelenskiy just days after an Oval Office blowup with the Ukrainian president left the support of his country’s most important ally in doubt,” the publication writes in a breaking story.
“The US is pausing all current military aid to Ukraine until Trump determines the country’s leaders demonstrate a good-faith commitment to peace, according to a senior Defense Department official, who asked not to be identified discussing private deliberations,” Bloomberg adds.
For now this is only the usual anonymous official, and while it could be premature (as meetings “mulling” a stoppage take place), it sure looks like that’s where things are headed.
“The official said all US military equipment not currently in Ukraine would be paused, including weapons in transit on aircraft and ships or waiting in transit areas in Poland,” the report notes further.
If so, this marks a monumental shift in Washington policy over the last three years of war in Eastern Europe.
* * *
Update (1455ET): And in the latest turn of events… the Trump administration has allegedly halted the financing of new weapons sales to Ukraine, and may freeze weapons shipments from US stockpiles, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing current and former US officials.
Trump, however, has denied this…
Trump on suspending military aid to Ukraine: ‘I haven’t even talked about that right now’
— Danny Kemp (@dannyctkemp) March 3, 2025
While the financing was halted in recent weeks as part of the Trump administration’s freeze on foreign aid, however the move to potentially shut down arms transfers comes after last week’s contentious meeting between President Trump, VP JD Vance, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House.
Ukraine is able to get weapons from the U.S. through several means, including Foreign Military Financing, which provides loans and grants for nations to buy weapons from U.S. defense companies, and the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which allows the Pentagon to buy weapons for Kyiv but is currently out of funds. However, presidential drawdown authority, which allows the Defense Department to pull directly from its own stockpiles, has been the most significant tool for arming Ukraine.
On Monday, the White House is holding a meeting to consider suspending shipments using the drawdown authority, a congressional aide and a second person familiar with the matter said. -WSJ
That said, the shutdown of financing new weapons sales began before Friday’s contentious meeting – during which Ukraine and the US were going to sign a framework agreement for a mineral rights deal that would have equated to de-facto boots on the ground, which would have dissuaded Russia from attacking (since the US would have to respond).
Meanwhile, Ukraine has just 90 days of weapons and other supplies to keep fighting Russia at its current pace, according to the report, which suggests that European allies could ‘make up for some of the potential shortfall.’
If the U.S. shutdown persists, Ukraine would lose its supply of some sophisticated weapons, including advanced air-defense systems, surface-to-surface ballistic missiles, navigation systems and long-range rocket artillery. The U.S. is the sole producer of some systems, including Army Tactical Missile Systems or ATACMs, and M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or Himars, which give the Ukrainians the ability to strike far behind Russian lines.
Once those U.S. supplies run out, Ukraine’s ability to conduct longer-range strikes, and to protect its own rear positions, would suffer, officials and analysts say.
“Europe can step in to meet a fair amount of Ukraine’s need for artillery ammunition when combined with munitions already shipped by the U.S. early this year,” said Michael Kofmann, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, adding “The challenges will be more visible as we get into summer.“
* * *
Update(1355ET):
Trump continues to talk shit on Truth Social – posting: “Europe has spent more money buying Russian Oil and Gas than they have spent on defending Ukraine – BY FAR!”
* * *
You can support ZeroHedge with the purchase of a high-quality, sharp, ZeroHedge Multitool.
Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back.
* * *
President Trump moments ago reacted fiercely to fresh statements of Ukrainian President Zelensky, who said that he sees the end of the war with Russia as being “very, very far away.” Zelensky had even added that he expects to keep receiving American support despite last Friday’s blow-up at the White House, wherein VP Vance charged that he is ungrateful.
“I think our relationship (with the U.S.) will continue, because it’s more than an occasional relationship,” Zelensky said late Sunday. “I believe that Ukraine has a strong enough partnership with the United States of America” to keep aid flowing. These were some of the remarks featured in the Associated Press article highlighted in a Truth Social post by Trump on Monday.
Trump warned in response, “This is the worst statement that could have been made by Zelensky, and America will not put with it for much longer.” He added in reference to Zelensky that “this guy doesn’t want there to be Peace as long as he has America’s backing…”.
This comes amid various unconfirmed reports that Trump will discuss halting military aid to Ukraine in a meeting with key advisors on Monday. Given Trump’s lashing out at Zelensky this morning, this certainly does look accurate.
Here’s also what the NY Times reported Friday:
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine entered the White House for a meeting with President Donald Trump on Friday knowing that the flow of weapons and military hardware from the United States to his country had essentially stopped.
By the time he left, after a televised argument between the two leaders, the situation appeared even more dire.
As the two men met, it had been 50 days since the Pentagon had announced a new package of weapons to Ukraine and the new administration had said little about providing any more.
A Trump administration official said later on Friday that all U.S. aid to Ukraine — including the final shipments of ammunition and equipment authorized and paid for during the Biden administration — could be canceled imminently.
This scenario is clearly getting closer and closer, especially given Zelensky’s continued open defiance, issuing statements critical of the White House while appearing ‘tough’ for the European cameras.
Meanwhile…
INTEL: Trump is meeting with his aides today to discuss canceling U.S. military aid to Ukraine.
Odds he cuts all military aid have shot up to 25%. pic.twitter.com/Bil1WYNDOU
— Polymarket (@Polymarket) March 3, 2025
Trump’s Director of National Intelligence is also piling on in a fresh interview, highlighting the anti-democratic nature of the Zelensky regime…
Trump’s Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard:
Elections are canceled in Ukraine. Churches are being shut down. Political opposition is silenced and there is total government control of the media. pic.twitter.com/ALKqZon6lO
— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 3, 2025
And more recent fightin words from Zelensky:
Reporter: Senator Graham said that perhaps you should consider resigning.
Zelensky: I can give him the citizenship of Ukraine. He will become a citizen of our country, and then his voice will gain weight. pic.twitter.com/7efBH0nazm
— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 3, 2025
Elon Musk within a couple hours after Trump’s initial post chimed in on X:
Zelensky wants a forever war, a never-ending graft meat grinder. This is evil. https://t.co/FVaEkIm7Gq
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 3, 2025
* * *
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has remained defiant in the wake of Friday’s explosive confrontation with President Trump and Vice President JD Vance in the Oval Office. He said from London Sunday that he will not apologize that that his country’s freedom is “not for sale”.
He acknowledged that the public spat “didn’t bring anything positive or additional to us as partner” – however he also said “This relationship will continue because this is more than a relationship in one moment.”
“If you don’t have an end to the war and you don’t have security guarantees, no one is able to control a ceasefire,” he told reporters while preparing to leave the UK, following a meeting with European leaders to agree on continued support for Ukraine.
Financial Times has underscored that Zelensky is not only rejecting calls from the US to apologize to Trump and Vance, but he’s now openly pushing back against ceasefire. The Ukrainian leader…
rejected calls for Ukraine to agree an immediate ceasefire in its war with Russia, saying it would be “failure for everyone” if a cessation of hostilities were not accompanied by detailed security guarantees.
“If you don’t have an end to the war and you don’t have security guarantees, no one is able to control a ceasefire,” Zelensky stressed in these latest remarks.
He still proclaimed that he remains “ready” to sign a US-Ukraine minerals deal, confirming that his aides are now speaking to Trump’s team about ways to move forward on it.
Zelensky says he is prepared to sign a mineral rights deal with the US and thinks the relationship with Washington can be salvaged. —NBC
But the mood from the White House appears to be one of willingness to cut Zelensky off altogether. There are reports that President Trump is mulling cutting off all continuing defense aid to Ukraine.
Administration officials have sought to clarify that this was no ambush which played out before media cameras on Friday, but that Zelensky was rude and confrontational the whole time, and never satisfied with what the US was providing to Ukraine.
National Security Advisor Michael Waltz told the Sunday news shows that President Trump “was frustrated and angry because it’s unclear if Zelensky truly wants to stop the fighting. The President and VP said enough is enough.”
Walz added: “This [lecturing] was the wrong approach, wrong time, and the wrong president to try to do this kind of a thing. This is not Joe Biden. The entire world saw that, crystal clear.”
Waltz tells what happened after the fight in the Oval Office – the Ukrainian team was in tears, but Zelensky stayed argumentative
Q: After the press left, you and Rubio told Zelensky he should leave the White House?
Waltz: We had a meeting, and advised the president that after… pic.twitter.com/JoN2zEGP8G
— Tymofiy Mylovanov (@Mylovanov) March 2, 2025
And this segment from Walz’s account in a Fox News interview is hugely revealing:
Q: How did Zelensky react after press left? Was he surprised?
Waltz: No. His team was. His ambassador, and adviser were practically in tears, wanting this to move forward. But Zelensky was still argumentative. I said “Mr. President, time is not on your side here, on the battlefield, and in terms of the world situation. And most importantly, USAID, and the taxpayers’ tolerance, is not unlimited”.
Waltz: I think Zelensky is used to hearing that “as long as it takes” and blank check from Biden.
He has not gotten the memo that this is a new sheriff in town. This is a new president, and we are determined to take a new approach towards peace.
European leaders are meanwhile trying to absorb the blowback and fallout, now talking about an alternative peace plan backed by “boots on the ground and planes in the air“. UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is leading the way on plans for a ‘stabilization force’ to back a Ukraine ceasefire, likely involving France – and which the Europeans hope Trump can sign on to. But the Kremlin is likely to immediately reject it, given the Western ‘boots on the ground’ aspect to the plan.
* * *
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