President Donald Trump is halting all military aid to Ukraine after a heated meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Fox News correspondent Lucas Tomlinson reported on Monday evening.
The pause in aid will continue until Trump believes Ukraine is committed to “good faith peace negotiations,” Tomlinson reported, citing a senior official in the Trump administration.
“This is not a permanent stop to aid, just a pause,” the official told Tomlinson. “The orders are being sent out right now.”
The decision comes after what Tomlinson described as concerns over Zelensky’s “conduct” during the past week.
Barak Ravid, a global affairs correspondent for Axios, also confirmed the news on social media, quoting two White House officials.
“President Trump has made it clear he is focused on peace. We need our partners to be focused on that goal as well. We’re pausing and reviewing our aid to make sure it’s helping lead to a solution,” one official told Ravid.
The tension between Trump and Zelensky reached a breaking point during a meeting in the Oval Office last Friday. What began as a typical conversation took a sharp turn in the final minutes when Trump accused Zelensky of “gambling with World War III” and said Ukraine had no leverage in its war with Russia.
Trump and other officials criticized Zelensky for not showing enough gratitude for U.S. support, despite previous examples of him doing so.
The disagreement escalated quickly, with shouting and finger-pointing. Zelensky was asked to leave the White House early, and a planned joint news conference was canceled. A mineral deal that was supposed to be signed during the visit was also left unsigned.
