World
Trump pauses all U.S. military aid to Ukraine after angry clash with Zelenskiy
Zelenskiy’s office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment nor did the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington.
U.S. President Donald Trump has paused military aid to Ukraine following his clash with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy last week, a White House official said, deepening the fissure that has opened between the two one-time allies, Reuters reported.
The move comes after Trump upended U.S. policy on Ukraine and Russia upon taking office in January, adopting a more conciliatory stance towards Moscow – and after an explosive confrontation with Zelenskiy at the White House on Friday in which Trump criticized him for being insufficiently grateful for Washington’s backing in the war with Russia.
“President Trump has been clear that he is focused on peace. We need our partners to be committed to that goal as well. We are pausing and reviewing our aid to ensure that it is contributing to a solution,” said the official on Monday, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
The White House had no immediate comment on the scope and amount of aid affected or how long the pause would last. The Pentagon could not provide further details.
Zelenskiy’s office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment nor did the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington.
On Monday, Trump again said Zelenskiy should be more appreciative of American support after earlier responding angrily to an Associated Press report quoting Zelenskiy as saying the end of the war is “very, very far away.”
“This is the worst statement that could have been made by Zelenskyy, and America will not put up with it for much longer!” Trump wrote on Truth Social, using an alternative spelling of the Ukrainian leader’s name.
Since Russia’s invasion three years ago, the U.S. Congress has approved $175 billion in total assistance for Ukraine, according to the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, read the report.
The Trump administration inherited $3.85 billion worth of Congressionally-approved authority to dip into U.S. arms stocks for Ukraine, but given the growing row between Washington and Kyiv, it was already unlikely for that assistance to be used.
Monday’s move goes beyond the no-new aid stance Trump had taken since assuming office – and appears to halt deliveries of military equipment approved by Biden including munitions, missiles and other systems.
But Trump also suggested on Monday that a deal to open up Ukraine’s minerals to U.S. investment could still be agreed despite his frustration with Kyiv, as European leaders floated proposals for a truce in Russia’s war with its neighbor.
The Trump administration views a minerals deal as America’s way of earning back some of the tens of billions of dollars it has given to Ukraine in financial and military aid since Russia invaded three years ago.
When asked on Monday if the deal was dead, Trump said at the White House: “No, I don’t think so.”
Trump described it as a “great deal for us” and said he would give an update on the situation on Tuesday night when he addresses a joint session of Congress.
In an interview on Fox News, Vice President JD Vance called on Zelenskiy to accept the minerals deal.
“If you want real security guarantees, if you want to actually ensure that Vladimir Putin does not invade Ukraine again, the very best security guarantee is to give Americans economic upside in the future of Ukraine,” Vance said.
Zelenskiy has made clear that a ceasefire must carry explicit security guarantees from the West to ensure that Russia, which holds about 20% of its land, does not attack again. Trump has refused to give any such guarantees, Reuters reported.
Beyond the military portion, U.S. assistance to Ukraine also includes budgetary assistance, largely delivered through a World Bank trust fund, and other funds that had been delivered through the U.S. Agency for International Development, which has been throttled by the Trump White House.
The U.S. decision left many questions unanswered, including whether munitions for the already delivered weapons systems can now be supplied or if the U.S. would still share intelligence with Ukraine on target identification and missile launches.
Key members of congressional oversight committees were not notified of the decision, including those on the Senate Armed Services Committee, a person with knowledge told Reuters.
Razom for Ukraine, a Ukrainian advocacy group, condemned the White House’s decision on aid. “By abruptly halting military assistance to Ukraine, President Trump is hanging Ukrainians out to dry and giving Russia the green light to keep marching west,” the group said in a statement.
Prior to the White House’s decision to halt its aid, European nations were rallying around Zelenskiy and trying to hatch a peace plan.
Privately, and sometimes publicly, officials are fuming at what they see as a betrayal of Ukraine, which had enjoyed staunch support from Washington since Russia’s invasion.
France, Britain and potentially other European countries have offered to send troops to Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire – something Moscow has already rejected – but say they would want support from the U.S., or a “backstop.”
“There are clearly a number of options on the table,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesman said.
World
Mosque blast in northeastern Nigeria kills five, injures dozens
World
Libyan army’s chief dies in plane crash in Turkey
Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said an investigation into the crash was under way.
The Libyan army’s chief of staff, Mohammed Ali Ahmed Al-Haddad, died in a plane crash on Tuesday after leaving Turkey’s capital Ankara, the prime minister of Libya’s internationally recognised government said, adding that four others were on the jet as well, Reuters reported.
“This followed a tragic and painful incident while they were returning from an official trip from the Turkish city of Ankara. This grave loss is a great loss for the nation, for the military institution, and for all the people,” Libyan Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah said in a statement.
He said the commander of Libya’s ground forces, the director of its military manufacturing authority, an adviser to the chief of staff, and a photographer from the chief of staff’s office were also on the aircraft.
Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on social media platform X that the plane had taken off from Ankara’s Esenboga Airport at 1710 GMT en route to Tripoli, and that radio contact was lost at 1752 GMT. He said authorities found the plane’s wreckage near the Kesikkavak village in Ankara’s Haymana district.
He added that the Dassault Falcon 50-type jet had made a request for an emergency landing while over Haymana, but that no contact was established.
The cause of the crash was not immediately clear.
Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said an investigation into the crash was under way.
The Tripoli-based Government of National Unity said in a statement that the prime minister directed the defence minister to send an official delegation to Ankara to follow up on proceedings.
Walid Ellafi, state minister of political affairs and communication for the GNU, told broadcaster Libya Alahrar that it was not clear when a crash report would be ready, but that the jet was a leased Maltese aircraft. He added that officials did not have “sufficient information regarding its ownership or technical history,” but said this would be investigated.
Libya’s U.N.-recognised Government of National Unity announced official mourning across the country for three days, read the report.
Turkey’s defence ministry had announced Haddad’s visit earlier, saying he had met with Turkish Defence Minister Yasar Guler and Turkish counterpart Selcuk Bayraktaroglu, along with other Turkish military commanders.
The crash occurred a day after Turkey’s parliament passed a decision to extend the mandate of Turkish soldiers’ deployment in Libya by two more years.
NATO member Turkey has militarily and politically supported Libya’s Tripoli-based, internationally recognised government. In 2020, it sent military personnel there to train and support its government and later reached a maritime demarcation accord, which has been disputed by Egypt and Greece.
In 2022, Ankara and Tripoli also signed a preliminary accord on energy exploration, which Egypt and Greece also oppose, Reuters reported.
However, Turkey has recently switched course under its “One Libya” policy, ramping up contacts with Libya’s eastern faction as well.
World
Trump administration recalls dozens of diplomats in ‘America First’ push
The State Department declined to name those affected, with a senior official calling the recalls a routine step for new administrations.
The Trump administration is recalling nearly 30 U.S. ambassadors and senior career diplomats to ensure embassies align with President Donald Trump’s “America First” agenda, a move critics say could weaken U.S. credibility abroad.
The State Department declined to name those affected, with a senior official calling the recalls a routine step for new administrations. The official said ambassadors are the president’s representatives and must advance his policy priorities.
However, officials familiar with the matter said the recalls largely affect career Foreign Service officers posted to smaller countries, where ambassadors are traditionally non-partisan. Those ordered back to Washington were encouraged to seek other roles within the State Department.
The American Foreign Service Association said some diplomats were notified by phone without explanation, calling the process “highly irregular” and warning that such actions risk harming morale and U.S. effectiveness overseas. The State Department did not respond to the criticism.
The move, first reported by Politico, comes as Trump seeks to place loyalists in senior roles during his second term, after facing resistance from the foreign policy establishment in his first.
Democrats have criticised the decision, noting that around 80 ambassadorial posts remain vacant. Senator Jeanne Shaheen said the recalls undermine U.S. leadership and benefit rivals such as China and Russia.
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