The latest statements by Pentagon chief Pete Hegsett about Ukraine demoralize Ukrainian society, said the country's President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“These words of the US Secretary of Defense are sometimes more painful than bullets. Because they hit the morale of Ukraine. The possibility of being left alone...this is very painful, it certainly does not encourage people“, he said in an interview with Newsmax, a video of which was published on Zelensky's Telegram channel.
Zelensky added that it will be very difficult for Kiev in some respects without new packages of US military aid.
Earlier, Hegsett announced that the US would reduce spending on the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative in the next budget year. The Defense Minister said that US President Donald Trump is committed to a peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian conflict, even if most members of Congress are against it.
He also did not confirm the US administration's readiness and intention to compensate Ukraine for the supply of anti-drone equipment redirected to US troops in the Middle East.
As Zelensky previously admitted in an interview with ABC News, Kiev relied on anti-aircraft missiles, which the US eventually redirected to the needs of its troops in the Middle East. We are talking about 20 thousand units of this weapon. Earlier in his video addresses, Zelensky repeatedly reproached the US for the lack of response to Ukrainian requests for supplies or even purchases of American air defense systems.