Halt to Ukraine Aid Flights White House blindsided by U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth

[Social Media]

 

The White House was reportedly blindsided when U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth blocked multiple military aid flights to Ukraine, only days after Donald Trump took office, without informing senior administration officials. According to documents reviewed by Reuters, Hegseth’s office issued a verbal order halting 11 flights filled with artillery and weapons meant for Ukrainian forces, sending shockwaves through Washington and Kyiv.

 

The aid shipments, scheduled to depart from Dover Air Force Base in Delaware and a U.S. military base in Qatar, were grounded after a January 30 Oval Office meeting. While former President Trump did not explicitly instruct Hegseth to stop the aid, the order to pause the deliveries reportedly followed soon after the meeting.

 

National security officials were left scrambling, unaware of who had issued the stop or why. The confusion deepened as the Pentagon failed to communicate the rationale for the sudden freeze. Flights resumed only after then-National Security Adviser Mike Waltz intervened days later.

 

Although a formal directive to suspend Ukraine-bound aid—originally approved under the Biden administration—was issued on March 4, the earlier verbal order drew scrutiny due to its timing and secrecy. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt acknowledged the complexity of the administration’s evolving strategy toward the war in Ukraine but declined to go into specifics.

 

“Negotiating an end to the Russia-Ukraine War has been a complex and fluid situation,” Leavitt said. “We are not going to detail every conversation among top administration officials throughout the process … The bottom line is the war is much closer to an end today than it was when President Trump took office.”

 

The halt in military assistance caught Ukrainian officials off guard as they struggled to get answers through diplomatic channels. Meanwhile, the Trump administration stood firmly behind Hegseth, despite growing criticism and speculation that the White House was evaluating alternative candidates for the top Pentagon post. According to Reuters, the month following the flight suspension was marked by internal turmoil, including mass firings, chaotic communication, and leaked messages among Trump allies discussing potential military actions in Yemen.

 

John Ullyot, who stepped down last month as a senior Pentagon spokesperson, hinted that the situation may deteriorate further. “There are very likely more shoes to drop in short order,” he said, describing the period as one of “total chaos.”

 

Hegseth, a former military officer and Fox News commentator, has forcefully rejected the criticism. Speaking outside the White House on April 21, he denounced the media and accused former staffers of leaking damaging stories out of spite. “What a big surprise that a bunch of… a few leakers get fired and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out from the same media that peddled the Russia hoax [and] won’t give back their Pulitzers — they got Pulitzers for a bunch of lies,” Hegseth said.

 

He continued, “This is what the media does. They take anonymous sources from disgruntled former employees and then they try to slash and burn people and ruin their reputations.”

 

Despite mounting calls for his resignation, the White House has denied any plans to replace Hegseth. However, the incident has amplified concerns over the administration’s command structure and left allies questioning the stability of U.S. military policy at a critical moment in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

 

  Adpated by ASEAN Now from The Independent  2025-05-08

 

 

[Hakuna Matata]

TRUMP MUST STOP UKRAINE AID, if he wants PEACE

 

 

[Hakuna Matata]

John Mearsheimer: Seems like Everyone Wants UKRAINE RUSSIA WAR to CONTINUE

 

 

[stevenl]

4 hours ago, Social Media said:

He continued, “This is what the media does. They take anonymous sources from disgruntled former employees and then they try to slash and burn people and ruin their reputations.”

Sure, blame the media for your own ineptness, for your own incompetence.

[rudi49jr]

Perhaps they should ship his drunk @ss to Ukraine and force him to spend a few weeks at the frontline, so he can experience firsthand the warcrimes that Russia is committing there. Maybe it will make him think twice about the real nature of the Russian regime, and wanting to lift the sanctions and going back to doing business with them as if nothing had happened.

[terryofcrete]

Class Act ! 

[Hamus Yaigh]

5 hours ago, Hakuna Matata said:

TRUMP MUST STOP UKRAINE AID, if he wants PEACE

Some view Baabs' work as attempting to present both sides, as he has reported from Russian and Ukrainian perspectives. However, critics, especially in Western and Ukrainian circles, label him a Russia apologist, arguing his coverage often aligns with Kremlin narratives, downplaying Russian actions or emphasizing Ukrainian or Western faults. There’s no definitive evidence he explicitly supports Russia’s war, but his focus on questioning Western and Ukrainian accounts can give the impression of bias.