Trump pauses U.S. military aid to Ukraine after clash with Zelenskyy

U.S. President Donald Trump suspended military aid to Ukraine on Monday, sharply escalating pressure on Kyiv to agree to peace negotiations with Russia.

The move comes just days after a stunning public clash between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Trump, who is seeking a rapid end to the conflict. 

Trump earlier on Monday had declined to rule out a pause when quizzed by reporters, but any disruption in the flow of U.S. arms to the front line would rapidly weaken Ukraine's chance of holding back Russia's offensive.

"The President has been clear that he is focused on peace. We need our partners to be committed to that goal as well," a White House official said. "We are pausing and reviewing our aid to ensure that it is contributing to a solution."

Congressional Democrats immediately condemned the pause as dangerous and illegal. 

Trump also warned he would "not put up" much longer with Zelenskyy's defiance, and said Ukraine's leader should be "more appreciative" of U.S. support.

Speaking at the White House, Trump said Zelenskyy "won't be around very long" without a ceasefire deal with Moscow.

Impact on Kyiv

The pause has gone into effect immediately and impacts hundreds of millions of dollars of weaponry in the process of being sent to Ukraine.

Trump's stance has upended U.S. support for Kyiv, and Washington's allies more broadly, and stoked concern about Washington pivoting to Russia.

The Kremlin said on Tuesday that pausing U.S. military aid to Ukraine would be the best contribution to the cause of peace, but cautioned that Russia needed to clarify the details of the move by Trump.

European support

After weekend crisis talks in London, the UK and France are investigating how to propose a one-month Ukraine-Russia truce "in the air, at sea and on energy infrastructure" - potentially backstopped by troops on the ground.

Zelenskyy said discussions were still focusing on the "first steps," adding: "An agreement on ending the war is very, very far away" - a comment that angered Trump.

On Monday night, Zelenskyy said he wanted to "maintain positions and create conditions for proper diplomacy to achieve the swiftest possible end to this war with a just peace." He added: "We need peace, true and honest peace – not endless war. And security guarantees are essential."

Ukraine agreed to denuclearize in 1994 only in exchange for protection provided by the U.S. and Britain.

Russia dismissed the comments, accusing him of not wanting peace - echoing U.S. criticism after he was shouted down Friday in the Oval Office.

On the ground, Ukrainian officials reported fatalities from a Russian missile strike on a military training facility some 130 kilometers from the frontline.

A respected military blogger said between 30 and 40 soldiers were killed and 90 more wounded in the attack near Dnipro on Saturday.

'Deliberate' escalation?

Trump has previously called Zelenskyy, president since 2019, a "dictator" for not holding elections, even though martial law precludes any vote because of the conflict. 

Zelenskyy dismissed calls to step down, repeating his pledge to do so only if Ukraine were given NATO membership, which Russia - and now the U.S. under Trump - opposes.

In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov blamed Zelenskyy for Friday's blow-up with Trump and Vice President JD Vance, saying he "demonstrated a complete lack of diplomatic abilities." "He doesn't want peace," Peskov said.

On Monday Vance told broadcaster Fox News he was confident Zelenskyy would "eventually" agree to peace talks with Moscow.

But Germany's likely next chancellor, Friedrich Merz, said the astonishing White House clash was a "deliberate escalation" by Trump.