Ukraine has warned that the delivery of American weapons to the battlefield could be delayed due to the US government shutdown. Discussions on US military support for Kyiv were frozen after the government shut down on September 30.
This is reported by The Telegraph, citing a source in the Ukrainian government.
The day before, on September 29, a Ukrainian delegation flew to Washington to meet with White House representatives and develop an agreement to exchange drone technology for American royalties.
However, the negotiations have been thrown into limbo due to the shutdown, with federal workers asked to stay home.
“I don’t understand how they will continue,” a Ukrainian government source told The Telegraph.
The publication also writes, citing sources, that all future projects have "suffered a little" because people from the Pentagon, the State Department, and the White House are not meeting.
The source added that "other Ukrainian delegations that were supposed to arrive in the coming weeks are now reviewing their plans".
At the same time, the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Rustem Umerov reported on October 2 that the Ukrainian delegation had a number of meetings with officials from the Pentagon, Congress, and military personnel of all branches and types of US troops.
According to him, the main purpose of the Ukrainian teamʼs visit is technical negotiations on signing an agreement to purchase Ukrainian drones.
Weapons supplies to Ukraine
Since Donald Trump became US president in January 2025, he has not provided a single military aid package to Ukraine. However, US and NATO representatives have created a new assistance mechanism — PURL.
Under the PURL system, Ukraine prepares a list of priority requirements, which includes the weapons that are most needed on the front line now. NATO allies buy American weapons or donate their own, if they are in their arsenals. The new mechanism will ensure the rapid supply of Western weapons to the Ukrainian army.
Within the framework of PURL, NATO allies have already agreed to purchase weapons to fight the Russians for $2 billion. The initiative was joined by:
- The Netherlands is the first country to finance a €500 million package;
- Denmark, Norway, and Sweden together contributed another $500 million;
- Germany reported the purchase of weapons for Ukraine for $500 million.
- Canada also reported the purchase of weapons for Ukraine for $500 million.
As Volodymyr Zelensky said, Belgium, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Iceland, and Luxembourg have already declared their willingness to contribute to the upcoming 5th package.
Under this scheme, Western partners hope to provide Ukraine with a total of $10 billion in military assistance.
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