WASHINGTON — CIA Director John Ratcliffe confirmed Wednesday the US stopped sharing intelligence with Ukraine after President Trump paused military aid to Kyiv amid its three-year war with Russia.
Trump prevented further military aid from flowing to Ukraine on Monday after his public feud with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office over a joint economic investment with Kyiv on rare-earth minerals.
The president booted Ukraine’s leader from the White House on Friday before the agreement was signed.
Trump “asked for a pause” on both military aid and intelligence, Ratcliffe told Fox Business’ Maria Bartiromo, because he questioned whether Zelensky “was committed to the peace process.”
Ratcliffe praised the pause as being necessary to move peace negotiations forward.
The Ukrainian president sent a letter to Trump on Tuesday saying Ukraine is ready to for peace — something Trump and Vice President JD Vance were waiting for after claiming Zelensky “disrespected” the US for not being “thankful” enough and wanted to engage in diplomatic discussions before members of the White House press.
“You saw the response — that president Zelensky put out a statement saying ‘I’m ready for peace and I want Donald Trump’s leadership to bring about that peace,’” the CIA director said.
Ratcliffe said he thinks pause “will go away” and “we will work shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine as we have to push back on the aggression that’s there.”
Ukraine had been relying on US intelligence in its war with Russia since 2022. The technology allowed the Ukrainian military to track Russian military moves, and the pause could seriously hamper Kyiv’s military maneuvers.
It is unclear when the US will turn back on the intelligence sharing.
Trump, in his Tuesday speech before Congress, said he “appreciated” the letter he received from Zelensky — but set no date for a face-to-face meeting to get relations back on track.
Ukrainian officials have said they can hold off Russian forces without US support — but only until the summer.
