Zelenskyy Accuses US of Delaying Paid-For Interceptor Missiles
Ukraine's president has told US senators that Washington is deliberately holding up deliveries of interceptor missiles already paid for by European allies, deepening a public rift with the Trump administration as Russian strikes continue.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused the United States of deliberately delaying deliveries of interceptor missiles to Ukraine, sharpening a public dispute with Donald Trump's administration over the pace and reliability of Western military support. Speaking to US senators, the Ukrainian president said the Pentagon was holding back missiles that European countries had already paid for under the prioritised Ukraine requirements list, known as Purl.
According to Zelenskyy, the shipment is waiting on the signature of US defence secretary Pete Hegseth. He also said several European countries were prepared to transfer Patriot interceptor missiles from their own stockpiles but were still awaiting American approval to do so. «All of this suggests that some political decision has been made to slow down the support for us,» he said in remarks released by the Ukrainian presidency.
The White House rejected the suggestion that Washington was obstructing the process. An official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the US «continues to play a constructive role in speaking to both sides in working towards bringing the war to an end». Reports in the US press indicated that the administration had not approved the transfer of the interceptors to Kyiv.
The dispute has been fuelled by domestic American politics. Trump has blamed Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries for rising fuel prices, an issue looming large in the run-up to the US midterm elections. «Maybe it's time for Zelenskyy to get somebody else to negotiate» an end to the war with Russia, the US president said.
Zelenskyy described recent American decisions on the war — including delays in arms shipments and restrictions on intelligence sharing — as «hard to explain». Washington denies making any changes to intelligence-sharing arrangements with Kyiv. The Ukrainian leader said Ukraine received no warning from the US about a Russian missile attack on Sunday evening, reviving concerns that Washington may be withholding intelligence to pressure Kyiv into capitulating to Moscow.
Ukrainian air force spokesperson Yuri Ihnat said Ukraine had not been warned before a Russian missile barrage struck power plants in Kyiv at about 11pm. Ukraine did receive a warning ahead of a subsequent strike, he added. Writing on social media, Zelenskyy said: «Once again, Russia launched a ballistic missile attack in multiple waves throughout the night, and once again, there was no warning from our partners.»
The human cost of the war was underlined by an attack in Ukraine's north-eastern Kharkiv region, where six people, including young children, were killed when a Russian drone struck a park. Zelenskyy called it a «pure atrocity», saying the drone «struck people directly — in a park near an ordinary cafe». Among the dead in Nova Vodolaga were a one-year-old girl and her mother.
Diplomatic efforts to end the conflict are continuing. Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to travel to Norway this week for the next round of negotiations, with Zelenskyy anticipated to attend. The Oslo talks were expected to involve Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Store, representatives of the E4 group — the UK, France, Germany and Poland — as well as the EU and Nato. Witkoff is also due to travel to Russia to meet Vladimir Putin, according to people familiar with the tentative schedules.
Separately, the Vatican said Pope Leo had held a phone call with Zelenskyy and urged Ukraine and Russia to cooperate in allowing aid and food into the blockaded town of Oleshky, where residents have reported a deepening food crisis. The call came three days after the pontiff asked Putin to arrange a ceasefire so aid could enter the Russian-occupied town, a request the Kremlin did not address when it said Putin would help organise supplies.
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