Trump Announces Pause on Ukrainian Aid One Day After European Leaders Summit

European Leaders Summit in London. Image Courtesy: Lauren Hurley/Wikimedia Commons

On Monday 3rd March, US President Donald Trump announced he would be suspending all aid to Ukraine in its fight against Russia. The decision from the Oval Office came after Trump and his Vice President, JD Vance, clashed publicly with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday 28th February over the efficacy of a ceasefire deal with Russian President, Vladimir Putin.

According to officials in the Pentagon, military assistance will continue to be withheld until Ukraine shows a commitment to reach a peace agreement, something Zelenskyy said on Sunday was “very, very far away”. Such assistance, summing to over $1bn in arms and munitions, may also be contingent on a personal apology from Zelenskyy to Trump, with officials suggesting that the Ukrainian President may need to grovel at this stage of the fallout. 

Trump’s announcement came just one day after Keir Starmer hosted a world leader summit at Lancaster House in London. The Prime Minister and eighteen other politicians, primarily from Europe, met to discuss targets for aid in the Ukrainian war effort.

In contrast to his reception at the White House, Zelenskyy was warmly embraced by Starmer and other allies throughout the day, culminating in the UK pledging a £2.2bn loan in military aid - paid for by frozen Russian assets - and an agreement for Ukraine to use £1.6bn of UK export finance to buy 5,000 air defence missiles manufactured in Belfast.

In a press conference after the summit, Starmer also promised a “coalition of the willing”, poised to help Ukraine maintain a strong defensive posture after any peace deal that might be made. Members of this coalition have not yet been made public. 

However, Starmer also made clear that any plans to reinforce Ukrainian resistance against Russia required US backing. Before suspending aid, Trump responded on his social media platform Truth Social, suggesting it was "probably not a great statement to have been made in terms of a show of strength against Russia”.