Recently, the US partially halted arms deliveries to Ukraine. Now comes a reversal. Trump justifies this, among other things, by arguing that Putin is spouting nonsense. Ukraine expects deliveries soon.
US President Donald Trump expressed his anger at Russian President Vladimir Putin. During an appearance at the White House, he said,"We get a lot of bullshit thrown at us by Putin." The Russian president is "always very nice," but that ultimately turns out to be meaningless.
Putin doesn't treat people right; he kills too many people. That's why the US is sending some defensive weapons to Ukraine—he approved it. Referring to a bill proposed by the US Senate for further sanctions against Russia, Trump said he is examining it very closely.
"I don't know, why don't you tell me?"
On Monday, the US Department of Defense announced that it was sending additional defensive weapons to Ukraine at Trump's direction. The announcement came just under a week after it emerged that the US had initially halted deliveries of some previously promised weapons to Ukraine, including anti-aircraft missiles.
When asked by a journalist who had ordered the temporary halt, Trump replied during the White House appearance:"I don't know, why don't you tell me?"
Zelenskyy expects deliveries soon
The delivery stop was a shock for many people in Ukraine. Russian airstrikes with drones and missiles have increased massively in recent months. And at the moment, Ukraine can only protect itself against ballistic missile attacks with the American"Patriot" system.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he now expects arms deliveries soon."This primarily concerns air defense and all other elements of deliveries from America." He added that the necessary statements and decisions for lifting the partial moratorium on arms deliveries had come from Washington.
"Look for reliable arms suppliers"
Ukraine has been defending itself in the war for more than three years. For weeks, the Russian military has been trying primarily to overwhelm its neighboring country's air defenses.
Anatoly Khrapchynsky, a former Ukrainian Air Force officer, warned that the US could again withhold promised deliveries."Of course, we should be grateful if the US continues to give us the opportunity to equip the Patriot system with anti-aircraft missiles." But Ukraine must pool its own resources and look for reliable arms suppliers, said Khrapchynsky, who is now an entrepreneur in the field of electronic warfare.
War rages with undiminished ferocity
The United States has been one of Ukraine's biggest supporters since the beginning of the war, when Democrat Joe Biden was still US President. Even under his successor, Trump, it remained the most important arms supplier. However, after Trump returned to the White House in January, the United States moved closer to Russia, including by initiating direct talks between representatives.
Trump has changed his stance on the warring parties several times in recent months. At times, according to experts, he largely adopted the Russian perspective, and he snubbed the Ukrainian president in front of cameras at the White House. However, Trump has also repeatedly expressed criticism of Putin.
During his election campaign, Trump promised to end the war immediately after taking office. Five months have passed since then – and the war continues unabated.
