The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has been holding off on approving the transfer of Patriot interceptor missiles to Ukraine.
The Washington Post reported on the 19th, citing a U.S. government official and multiple sources, that approval by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been delayed for at least some of the Patriot stockpiles held by allied countries. Countries that have purchased U.S.-made weapons need approval from the U.S. government under their contracts before passing them on to a third country.
According to the sources, Hegseth has neither formally rejected the transfer requests nor completed the steps needed to approve them. They said he has continued to approve other forms of assistance to Ukraine.
The report came amid observations that Trump is pushing a broad deal with Russia while scaling back support for Ukraine to press it toward ending the war.
The Kyiv Independent, a Ukrainian English-language outlet, also reported, citing Ukrainian officials and military sources, that Hegseth has not approved the transfer of a substantial volume of Patriot interceptor missiles. The outlet said suspicions have emerged within Ukraine that the United States may be deliberately withholding missile supplies as leverage.
Ukraine urgently needs interceptor missiles such as the Patriot to fend off Russian air attacks, but its stockpiles are dwindling fast. A Ukrainian government official said recently that only a couple of interceptor missiles were left in stock.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on the 19th that Russia had attacked with 16 ballistic missiles overnight and that once again there had been no warning from partners, a remark suggesting that U.S. intelligence support had not been properly provided. He also criticized partner countries for turning away from reality, saying that deliveries of missiles for air defense are being blocked while sanctions on Russia are eased or their enforcement delayed.
Trump, speaking to reporters at the White House the same day, said Zelensky was not being much help in improving the situation and did not appear to want to stop the war. "It's time for somebody else to negotiate on behalf of Ukraine," he said.
The Washington Post noted that relations between Trump and Zelensky had been positive through their meeting in New York last month but have deteriorated again recently.
Ukrainian officials argued that the withholding of U.S. support has made it harder to defend against Russian attacks, resulting in casualties. The Post reported that Ukraine's early warning system for ballistic missiles, which relies on U.S. intelligence, has also suffered repeated disruptions.
The United States maintains that it has never suspended intelligence sharing. Asked about intelligence sharing, Trump said the United States shares a great deal and has given Ukraine a lot, but that Ukraine has never given anything in return.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking to reporters during a visit to Uzbekistan the same day, said intelligence sharing had never been halted and that the U.S. focus was on ending the war, adding that Zelensky should focus on that as well. According to the Post, Rubio said of Ukraine's claim that there had been no advance warning before the recent attack that there had been a software problem and that U.S. European Command was investigating it.
Zelensky has also asked the United States for Patriot interceptor missiles in exchange for halting strikes on Russian oil refineries.
According to Reuters and the Ukrainian presidential office, Zelensky said in a video conference with U.S. senators and representatives on the 19th that Ukraine could halt attacks on Russian oil refineries for 30 days and that, in return, it hoped the United States would protect its airspace with Patriot interceptor missiles during that period, which he described as a fair arrangement.
Zelensky added that Ukraine had already presented such a proposal to the U.S. side but had received no answer indicating cooperation, and claimed that the U.S. Defense Department was deliberately delaying the process of delivering to Ukraine missiles that had already been paid for in Europe.