The U.S. has paused its intelligence sharing with Ukraine, cutting off the flow of vital information that has helped the war-torn nation target Russian invaders, but Trump administration officials said Wednesday that positive talks between Washington and Kyiv mean it may only be a short suspension.
Information about Russia's intentions and military movements has been critical to Ukraine's defense and a strong indication of support from the U.S. and other Western allies. The suspension comes after Trump paused military aid to Ukraine and is another indication of how he has transformed America's relationship with close allies.
“We have taken a step back and are pausing and reviewing all aspects of this relationship,” national security adviser Mike Waltz said Wednesday.
Comments from top Trump administration officials suggest the pause is part of the broader negotiations between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to negotiate a peace deal with Russia, and that intelligence could begin flowing to Ukraine again soon.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe called the suspension a “pause” and said it came after the disastrous meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy in the Oval Office last week. Ratcliffe said Trump wanted to know that Zelenskyy was serious about peace.
“On the military front and the intelligence front, the pause that allowed that to happen will go away, and I think we’ll work shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine as we have,” Ratcliffe said.
The CIA declined to respond to questions about the change in intelligence sharing.
Ukraine could soon be receiving intelligence from the U.S. once Zelenskyy shows to Trump he is serious about participating in talks on Trump's terms, Waltz said on Fox News Channel's “Fox & Friends.”
“I think if we can nail down these negotiations and move towards these negotiations and, in fact, put some confidence building measures on the table, then the president will take a hard look at lifting this pause," he said. “We have to know that both sides are sincerely negotiating towards a partial, then permanent, peace.”
Officials in Ukraine declined to comment Wednesday on the relationship.
It's unclear whether the American suspension affects the intelligence sharing ties between Ukraine and other Western powers, including four of the Five Eyes, an intelligence sharing coalition of the U.S., Canada, U.K., Australia and New Zealand.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesman, Dave Pares, would not confirm whether the U.K. is still supplying Ukraine with intelligence from the United States.
He said Britain was “will do everything to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position across all aspects of our support, particularly around defense and security, and our position hasn’t changed.”
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