Two administration officials told Politico that the White House plans to expedite the weapons delivery amid concerns that a future Trump administration would halt weapons shipments before they reach Kyiv.
Trump has repeatedly stressed that he would end the war within “24 hours” and get the US “out” of Ukraine — a plan that may involve ceding Ukrainian territory and creating autonomous regions in the east, according to reporting in October.
In June, two top advisors to Trump proposed a plan that would cease military aid to Ukraine unless it agrees to hold peace negotiations with Russia, Reuters reported, citing the advisors, retired General Keith Kellogg and Fred Fleit.
Politico reported that of the $61 billion aid package passed by congress in April, only $4.3 billion remains to pull existing weapons stocks, while a further $2.1 billion in funding remains to put weapons on contract with US defense companies.
Despite the president’s ability to deliver existing weapons stocks through presidential drawdown authority, White House officials are concerned that the delivery of the large amount of weaponry may take months to reach Ukraine — well past Trump’s inauguration into office.
Despite the concerns around the weapons timely delivery, the Pentagon will remain “on track to continue to provide the authorized assistance to support Ukraine”, Pentagon spokesperson Lt. Col. Charlie Dietz told Politico.
“We expect to have further assistance in the coming weeks.”
Mont recently, President Biden announced the latest $425 million in new security assistance for Ukraine during a phone call with President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Following Trump’s presidential election victory, Zelensky has move to mend previous tensions stemming from Trump’s first impeachment trial involving Zelensky in 2019. Zelensky congratulated Trump on his election victory in a phone call on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal has stated that Ukraine is cautiously optimistic about continued US support under Trump and expects “clear and quick steps” from the new leadership.
“Donald Trump is a strong leader, there is no doubt about that,” Shmyhal said at the Kyiv International Economic Forum.
