The Washington Post: Trump's Policy Shift, US Resumes Arms Aid to Ukraine
The Washington Post reported on July 8 that US President Trump announced on the evening of July 7 at a White House dinner with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu that the United States would immediately resume delivering "defensive weapons" to Ukraine, just five days after the Pentagon suspended key weapon shipments. Trump emphasized that Ukraine "must be able to defend itself," and said "they are being heavily attacked." The weapons to be resumed include defensive equipment such as air defense missiles.
On the same day, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell confirmed that, according to Trump's instructions, the Department of Defense had initiated additional defensive weapon shipments to Ukraine to ensure that Ukrainians could defend themselves. This policy reversal came after the US Department of Defense unilaterally suspended the delivery of weapons worth hundreds of millions of dollars on July 2, including dozens of Patriot air defense missiles, more than 250 precision-guided rocket systems, thousands of 155mm shells, and Hellfire missiles.
The decision to suspend aid was verbally issued by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth without coordination with the White House, which surprised both Ukraine and the US. The White House previously explained that the suspension was due to an audit that found low military stockpiles, requiring priority for American interests, but Adam Smith, a senior Democratic member of the House Armed Services Committee, refuted this, saying, "Stockpiles are not at their lowest level in three and a half years," and there is no evidence that aiding Ukraine would endanger US supplies.
At the time of the policy shift, Russian forces launched 550 drones and 11 missiles toward Ukraine on July 4, setting a record for the highest single-day air raid in 41 months. Although the Ukrainian army intercepted 478 targets, ballistic missiles still broke through the defenses, highlighting the urgent need for Ukraine's air defense systems — the Ukrainian army consumes Patriot missiles at almost the same rate as it receives them, requiring 50 interceptors per month to counter Russian ballistic missile attacks.
Trump revealed that he was "very dissatisfied" with Russian President Putin, as Putin intends to continue the war, while Ukrainian President Zelenskyy called it "the most productive conversation" after speaking with Trump, focusing on the air defense issue. Since February 2022, the US has provided over $66 billion in military aid to Ukraine, but the Trump administration has not yet requested new funding, and existing resources are only sufficient to maintain "a few months."
Deputy Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament Olena Kondratyuk affirmed that resuming aid was "the right decision," while the head of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Oleksandr Merezhko, warned: "Don't judge Trump by words, look at actions — he often changes his mind."
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1837087454800074/
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