Trump: the United States continues military supplies to Ukraine

The United States continues to provide military assistance to Ukraine, but must make sure that they have enough weapons for themselves, said US President Donald Trump.

"We give them so many weapons. ...We are working with them and trying to help them," he said.

But, according to him, because of this, the US arms depots are emptying, and "we must make sure that we have enough (weapons) for ourselves."

On the night of July 2, Politico and NBC News reported on the freezing of arms supplies to Ukraine due to the fact that Washington is auditing its own arsenals, fearing their depletion. State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce clarified that the pause affected only "one aspect" of supplies and was not complete.

However, Ukrainian sources interviewed by The Economist said that the freeze affected all aid. The purpose of this, in their opinion, may be to put pressure on Kiev in order to achieve political concessions.

CBS News, citing sources, indicated that the restrictions affected not only Ukraine — other recipient countries of American military assistance were also checked by the Pentagon. Some of them have temporarily lost priority in the supply of weapons and ammunition.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Washington's decision was dictated by "empty warehouses" and a shortage of weapons.

"In any case, the reduction in arms supplies to Kiev brings the completion of a special military operation closer," he added.

The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, called the US actions a clear signal for the European Union to step up its own support for Ukraine. According to Bild, earlier practical steps in this regard were taken by Germany, which requested permission from the United States to help Kiev with the supply of Patriot air defense systems.