During the meeting, Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Mariana Betsa warned that any delay in military assistance would only embolden Russia to escalate its aggression, rather than facilitate peace.
Ukrainian Patriots without US missiles?
The planned cuts—if fully implemented—could prove particularly damaging, as they would affect critical Ukrainian systems such as Patriot missile batteries and Hellfire missiles, both of which are used to intercept Russian drones and ballistic missiles.
Moscow has dramatically escalated its aerial attacks in recent weeks. On Sunday, Ukraine faced its worst barrage yet, with 537 projectiles launched—477 drones and 60 missiles—causing heavy casualties and destruction.
US supply freeze
News of the US supply freeze followed an emotional exchange between President Donald Trump and a Ukrainian BBC journalist during last week's NATO summit in The Hague.
When the reporter asked Trump about US missile deliveries, he asked about her background. Upon learning she was based in Warsaw and that her husband was fighting on the front lines, Trump, visibly moved, promised to look into the matter.
It appears he did—though not to Ukraine’s benefit.
Despite arms procurement likely being a top item in talks between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during the summit, the outcome was unclear. Both sides issued brief, upbeat statements, but with few details.
Ukraine is now prioritising direct commercial arms deals, as existing US government contracts—signed during President Joe Biden’s administration—are set to expire soon.
While European aid is on the rise, reaching EUR 35 billion so far this year, it still falls short of meeting Ukraine's urgent military needs.
Ukraine sees mixed results of NATO summit
The Hague summit itself was more favourable to Kyiv than initially feared. Just days before, there were doubts Zelensky would be invited at all or that Ukraine would be mentioned in the final statement—something Trump reportedly opposed, as it could complicate his self-assigned role as potential peace broker.
Thanks to strong European lobbying, however, Zelensky attended, dined with NATO leaders, and saw Ukraine become the only non-member state named in the summit declaration—unlike partners such as Japan, Australia or South Korea.
Still, Kyiv did not get everything it hoped for: no progress on NATO membership or a presidential-level Ukraine-NATO Commission meeting.
But the summit didn’t roll back prior commitments either. Last year's declaration that Ukraine’s path to NATO is "irreversible" still stands, and foreign ministers held a commission meeting in place of heads of state.
Importantly for Ukraine, point three of the final statement included a concrete pledge: NATO members committed to continuing military support, and such spending will count toward each country's defence budget under alliance rules.
Yet the summit also made clear that NATO, at least for now, has no appetite for formally expanding to include Ukraine. Washington remains wary, viewing membership as a potential bargaining chip with Russia and acknowledging Moscow’s objections. Some European countries, including Hungary and Germany, also expressed concern—Berlin in particular citing risks to its own security.
But Kyiv sees this logic as backwards: keeping Ukraine outside NATO leaves it vulnerable to continued Russian aggression. So long as Moscow sees Ukraine as outside the Western security umbrella, it sees little reason to stop attacking. Integrating Ukraine into NATO post-war could be the only real deterrent to future Russian invasions.
Ultimately, a lack of political will from the West—both in delaying ammunition shipments and in stalling on NATO membership—risks escalating the war.
Russia understands only the language of strength, but many Western leaders still fail to grasp the fundamentals of Russian strategic thinking.
Tadeusz Iwański
Tadeusz Iwański
The author is head of the Belarus, Ukraine and Moldova department at the Warsaw-based Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW). From 2006 to 2011, he worked at Polskie Radio dla Zagranicy, the Polish public broadcaster's international service.
Click on the audio player above for a report by Michał Owczarek.