Pentagon paused Ukraine aid without White House or key officials informed

According to five sources cited by CNN, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth halted critical military aid shipments to Ukraine last week without notifying President Trump or key national security officials. The decision was made without briefing the White House, the State Department, or even Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine, Ret. Gen. Keith Kellogg.

The freeze was the second time Hegseth had paused Ukraine-bound weapons this year without proper coordination. The first instance occurred in February and was quickly reversed. This time, the White House had to scramble to cover for a decision it had not authorized.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who also serves as Trump’s national security adviser, learned about the halt only after press reports broke the story, CNN reports.

Trump distances himself from the pause and orders aid to resume

During a Cabinet meeting, President Trump denied any involvement in the sudden stop to US military assistance. When asked if he had authorized the move, he responded,

“I don’t know, why don’t you tell me?”

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The US president later announced that Ukraine would continue to receive defensive weapons. Trump’s decision to restart the aid included directing the Pentagon to resume shipments of Patriot interceptor missiles, which had already been staged in Poland and were ready for rapid transfer to Kyiv.

A senior administration official told CNN that the weapons had been allocated by the previous administration and were already en route before the pause.

Pentagon’s chain of approval

The uncoordinated pause reportedly stemmed from a chain of internal decisions within the Department of Defense. Hegseth acted after receiving recommendations from Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby, a long-standing critic of large-scale US military aid to Ukraine.

“All five sources” CNN spoke with confirmed that Colby, citing concerns over US stockpile levels, advised halting the aid to prioritize other global defense needs. Colby had previously posted on X that “a Europe first policy is not what America needs in this exceptionally dangerous time.”

Colby passed his recommendation to Deputy Secretary of Defense Steve Feinberg, who approved the move based on his own doubts about the defense industry’s ability to replenish US munitions fast enough. Hegseth then signed off, believing it aligned with Trump’s “America First” stance.

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Congress not briefed—no evidence of urgent stockpile shortages

Lawmakers received no warning about the shipment freeze. According to CNN, Pentagon officials told congressional staff that the pause was due to concerns over US munitions levels. Yet, two sources familiar with those briefings said Congress had not been presented with any credible data showing a critical shortage that would justify the sudden halt.