Ukraine-Russia war latest: Trump military aid cut will hit frontline fight against Putin’s forces within days
Donald Trump’s decision to suspend all military aid to Ukraine will have an effect within days, a Ukrainian MP has warned.
Oleksandr Merezhko, who chairs the Ukrainian parliament’s foreign affairs committee, told The Independent: “My main concern is the lack of missiles for air defences to protect Ukrainian cities,” he said. “The Russians will use this opportunity to intensify attacks. This is why Trump’s decision is so dangerous.”
He said that impact will be felt across the country “in the coming days”.
“It will embolden Putin,” Mr Merezhko added. “Putin will exploit this opportunity. He might also try to intensify offensives on the frontline. That is why it is so dangerous.”
Fellow MP Oleksiy Goncharenko said the decision to pause military aid will be “catastrophic” and “thousands of people will die” as a result.
The Kremlin has welcomed the suspension of aid.
A Trump administration official said the US president was focused on reaching a peace deal to end the war, and wanted Mr Zelensky “committed” to that goal. The US was “pausing and reviewing” its aid, the official added, to “ensure that it is contributing to a solution”.
