Ukraine seeks US clarification amid halt in defense system shipments
According to media reports, Ukrainian officials either remained silent or declined to comment when questioned about the US decision, suggesting they were caught off guard.
A senior Ukrainian official, speaking anonymously due to the sensitivity of the matter, stated that Kiev is 'now verifying with the Americans what exactly is happening.'
Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday that any reduction or suspension in Western weapons supplies to Ukraine would contribute significantly to ending the conflict.
'As far as we know, the reason for this step is empty stockpiles and a shortage of available weapons. In any case, the fewer weapons delivered to Ukraine, the closer we get to the end of the special military operation,' Peskov stated.
The Pentagon has halted shipments of critical air defense missiles and precision munitions to Ukraine due to mounting concerns that US weapons stockpiles have "fallen too low," Politico reported on Wednesday at dawn.
The move, reportedly spearheaded by Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby, follows an internal review of US military reserves. The review concluded that current stockpiles of Patriot interceptors, Hellfire missiles, precision-guided artillery rounds, and other vital munitions have fallen to levels considered insufficient for America's national defense priorities.
White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly confirmed the decision, stating it was made 'to put America's interests first' following a Department of Defense reassessment of global military aid commitments. 'The strength of the United States Armed Forces remains unquestioned — just ask Iran,' she said in a statement.
The shipments originally authorized under the Biden administration were part of two aid streams: emergency drawdowns from existing stockpiles and contracts signed through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. According to Politico, this freeze affects both channels and comes into effect just as Ukraine faces its heaviest wave of Russian aerial attacks in over a year.
Read more: Ukraine to launch arms production in Europe this summer: Zelensky
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
MTV Lebanon
a day ago
- MTV Lebanon
Russia accuses Kyiv and the West of rejecting diplomacy to solve conflict in Ukraine
Russia prefers political and diplomatic means to resolve conflict in Ukraine, but Kyiv and the West rejected that path, Russian news agencies reported on Sunday, citing Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. "Our preferred route is through political and diplomatic means," Peskov said, according to TASS state news agency.
LBCI
2 days ago
- LBCI
Russian attack kills 3 in Ukraine's city of Dnipro
Russia launched a barrage of drones and missiles in an overnight attack that killed three people in Ukraine's Dnipro and the nearby region on Saturday, Ukrainian officials said. Moscow's troops launched 235 drones and 27 missiles, damaging residential and commercial buildings and causing fires, the Ukrainian Air Force said. It said in a statement that 10 missiles and 25 attack drones hit nine sites. The rest of the drones and missiles were brought down, the Air Force said. "A terrible night. A massive combined attack on the region," Serhiy Lysak, the Dnipropetrovsk regional governor, said on the Telegram app. He said three people were killed in the attacks and six others wounded in the city of Dnipro and the nearby region. Lysak posted pictures showing firefighters battling fires, a residential building with smashed windows, and charred cars. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy vowed retaliatory strikes. "Russian military enterprises, Russian logistics, and Russian airports should feel that Russia's own war is now hitting them back with real consequences," Zelenskiy said on the Telegram app.
LBCI
2 days ago
- LBCI
Pope Leo meets Russian Orthodox Church official in Vatican
Pope Leo met on Saturday with Metropolitan Anthony, a senior cleric in the Russian Orthodox Church, in a possible effort to ease ties between the churches strained by the invasion of Ukraine. The pontiff saw Anthony, chairman of the department of external church relations, and five other high-profile clerics during an audience in the morning, the Vatican said in a statement without further elaborating. Since assuming the papacy in May, Leo has repeatedly appealed for peace in global conflicts and this month told visiting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy that the Vatican was willing to host Russia-Ukraine peace talks. Russian officials, however, have said they do not view the Vatican as a serious venue for talks because it is surrounded by NATO member Italy which has supported Ukraine. In his first call with President Vladimir Putin, at the beginning of June, Pope Leo urged Russia to take steps towards ending the conflict. The head of Russia's Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, has been an enthusiastic backer of the invasion of Ukraine. Reuters
