Trump caught off guard by Pentagon's abrupt move to pause Ukraine weapons deliveries, AP sources say

Source: Associated Press

Trump caught off guard by Pentagon’s abrupt move to pause Ukraine weapons deliveries, AP sources say

By AAMER MADHANI, SEUNG MIN KIM and TARA COPP
Updated 7:58 PM EDT, July 8, 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s decision to send more defensive weapons to Ukraine came after he privately expressed frustration with Pentagon officials for announcing a pause in some deliveries last week — a move that he felt wasn’t properly coordinated with the White House, according to three people familiar with the matter.

The Pentagon, which announced last week that it would hold back some air defense missiles, precision-guided artillery and other weapons pledged to Ukraine because of what U.S. officials said were concerns that American stockpiles were in short supply. Trump said Monday that the U.S. will have to send more weapons to Ukraine, effectively reversing the move.

Two of the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity about the sensitive internal discussions, said there was some internal opposition among Pentagon brass to the pause — coordinated by Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby — before it was announced.

One of the people described Trump as being caught “flat footed” by the announcement. The White House did not respond to queries about whether Trump was surprised by the Pentagon pause.

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Read more: https://apnews.com/article/trump-ukraine-weapons-pentagon-15694071ddb6f7040273e9ef090e84c4