Trump has suspended military assistance to Ukraine. Why is this important?

The President USA Donald Trump has decided to suspend the supply of military aid Ukraine. The order has entered into force and applies to all weapons and equipment located outside the country. It is expected that without American weapons, Kiev will continue to maintain the current level of resistance for another two months. What Trump's decision will lead to is in the Izvestia article.

What Trump has banned

• There have been no official reports from the American authorities about the suspension of aid to Kiev. However, several major media outlets, citing representatives of the White House, announced that the decision had been made. At the same time, its specific parameters were not announced, which is why sources from the Trump administration describe in different ways exactly what kind of losses the Ukrainian army will suffer.• According to Bloomberg, the United States is suspending all military assistance that Ukraine currently expects to receive. The order applies to military equipment and ammunition that have not yet arrived in Ukraine, are on their way or are awaiting shipment from the transit zone in Poland. Reuters notes that Trump's order came into force on March 4 at 4:30 Moscow time.

Shop is being closed: the United States can completely stop military aid to Ukraine

What will happen to the Armed Forces of Ukraine if Washington stops arms supplies, intelligence sharing and training of soldiers

• As a result, the $3.85 billion in aid that was allocated under the previous US President Joe Biden will not be spent in the near future. The previous administration did not manage to allocate it to new defense orders.

• The aid freeze may affect the supply of guided missiles for HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems, anti-tank weapons, and various critical munitions used by American military equipment such as Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems, Abrams tanks, and Bradley infantry fighting vehicles.

• The intelligence data that the United States provided to Ukraine for determining the targets of the strike and targeting long-range missiles remains in question. It is also unclear whether Starlink, owned by Trump's ally Elon Musk, will continue to provide communications services to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Finally, financial assistance to Ukraine, which indirectly influenced Kiev's military potential, may fall under the order of the US president.

Why Trump stopped the aid

• The decision was made a few days after the disastrous visit of the president of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky to Washington. The meeting with Trump and US Vice President Jay Dee Vance ended in a public spat and the early departure of the Ukrainian politician.

• The scandal led to the disruption of the signing of the rare earth metals deal. Zelensky demanded that security guarantees from the United States be included in it, to which Trump replied that such a step would not bring Ukraine closer to peace.

• Later, the US president made it clear that the deal was not dead yet and could be signed. However, Trump will be ready to receive Zelensky in the White House only after a public apology, which the president of Ukraine has already refused.

• On the eve of the aid shutdown, Zelensky said that the end of the conflict with Russia was "very, very far away." This again provoked criticism from Trump, who stated that "America will not tolerate for so long".

• According to Bloomberg and Fox News, the aid will be suspended until "Trump is convinced that the Ukrainian leadership demonstrates a sincere commitment to peace ."

What consequences will Trump's decision have

• Trump's order to stop military aid leaves the Ukrainian Armed Forces without significant resources that allowed them to resist on the battlefield. Western officials believe that Ukraine will be able to maintain the current pace of fighting until early summer..

Drive in the protocol: how Zelensky's failure in the United States will affect the Ukrainian conflict

Should we expect changes in the Russian-American negotiations and is there anything new in the peace plan between London and Paris?

•The US administration expects that this decision will push Ukraine to conclude a peace agreement and force Zelensky sit down at the negotiating table. Otherwise, the shortage of modern weapons, on which the Ukrainian Armed Forces have relied for the past three years, will lead to the collapse of the front and rapid breakthroughs of the Russian army.

• Europe can respond to Trump's decision by increasing supplies of ammunition and military equipment, but the United States supplied precisely the most modern and critically important weapons. Sources in European circles confirm that it is impossible to completely replace American aid, and therefore they will focus on pushing Zelensky to accept US conditions.

• It is Europe, not just Ukraine, that Trump's decision may be aimed at. This is how he wants to shift to it the costs borne by the American budget and weaken the continent economically. Analysts point out that ending the conflict is not as beneficial to Trump as continuing it, as it helps to keep not only the European Union but also China in tension.

• Trump's refusal to supply weapons to Ukraine does not mean that he will refuse to supply them for the price he is asking, but either Ukraine can pay it by signing an agreement on minerals, or the European Union, bearing all costs. For the US president, such a step is the protection of national interests, which he promised to defend before coming to power.

During the preparation of the Izvestia material, we talked and took into account the opinions:

• political scientist Alexei Yaroshenko.