The United States has interrupted its intelligence sharing with UkraineCutting the flow of vital information that has helped the war torn apart by the war targeting the Russian invaders, but officials of the Trump administration said on Wednesday that positive talks between Washington and kyiv meant that it is perhaps a short suspension.
Information on the intentions and military movements of Russia was essential to the defense of Ukraine and to a strong indication of support from the United States and other Western allies. The suspension comes after Trump interrupted military aid in Ukraine and is another sign of how it has transformed American relations with close allies.
“We have taken a step back and we stop and examine all aspects of this relationship,” said National Security Advisor Mike Waltz on Wednesday.
The comments of the best officials of the Trump administration suggest that the decision is part of the broader negotiations between Trump and the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to negotiate a peace agreement with Russia, and that information could start to flow back to Ukraine soon.
CIA director John Ratcliffe described the suspension of “break” and said that she came after the disastrous meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy in the Oval Office last week. Ratcliffe said Trump wanted to know that Zelenskyy was serious about peace.
“On the military front and the intelligence front, the break that made it happen will disappear, and I think we will work on the shoulder on the shoulder with Ukraine as we did,” said Ratcliffe.
American intelligence assistance is essential for Ukraine to follow the Russian troop movements and select targets. Ukrainians use information during the exploitation of high mobility artillery rocket systems in the United States, or Himars, and the American army tactical missile system, known as Atacms.
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Information from the United States and other allies also help Ukraine prepare for Russian attacks and provide critical information in the first days of the war that allowed Ukraine to thwart the hopes of Russian President Vladimir Putin for a rapid victory.
The CIA refused to answer questions about the change in intelligence sharing.
Ukraine may soon receive information from the United States once Zelenskyy shows Trump that he wants to seriously participate in Trump talks, Waltz on “Fox & Friends” said Fox News Channel.
“I think that if we can nail these negotiations and evolve towards these negotiations and, in fact, putting confidence construction measures on the table, the president will examine this break carefully,” he said. “We must know that the two parties sincerely negotiate towards a partial, then permanent peace.”
The moves of the new administration have dismayed leaders in Europe and Democrats in Washington, who say that Trump deprives an American ally of assistance they need to fight Russia.
The flow of information to Ukraine saved lives, said US representative Jim Himes in Connecticut, the highest democrat of the Chamber Intelligence Committee on Wednesday.
“The idea that we will now retain the vital intelligence of the Ukrainians who fight and die is unforgivable,” said Himes.
Ukraine officials refused to comment on the country’s intelligence sharing with Washington on Wednesday. CIA officials also refused to answer questions.
It is not clear if the American suspension affects information sharing links between Ukraine and other Western powers, including four of the five eyes, a coalition of information sharing of the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesman Dave Paes would not confirm if the United Kingdom still provides Ukraine from the United States.
He said that Great Britain was “will do everything to put Ukraine in the strongest position in all aspects of our support, especially around defense and security, and our position has not changed.”
–The writers of the Associated Press Jill Lawless in London, Barry Hatton in Lisbon, Portugal and Illia Novikov in kyiv contributed to this report.
& Copy 2025 the Canadian press