Donald Trump, the US President, has already temporarily halted American military aid to Ukraine, a decision which sparked fears the country could soon run out of weapons
The US has banned Britain from sharing intelligence from Washington with Ukraine, according to reports.
Donald Trump, 78, is said to have made the move as part of the US’ alarming withdrawal of support for Volodymyr Zelensky. There are already concerns Ukraine could run out of weapons in as little as two to three months’ time following Mr Trump’s decision to freeze American military aid to Kyiv.
And now reports claim all UK intelligence agencies and military outlets have received an order expressly forbidding the sharing of US-generated intelligence, previously known as “Rel UKR” – short for Releasable to Ukraine.
It is another huge blow for Mr Zelensky, 47, as the UK and other Western security partners such as Australia and New Zealand have shared such knowledge with Ukraine since the conflict began three years ago. As Russia’s onslaught continues, it is feared the ban will further hamper Ukraine’s chances to defend itself.
The ban affects the likes of the UK’s GCHQ, the spy agencies and intelligence branches of the Ministry of Defence. Phil Ingram, a UK military intelligence expert, told the Daily Mail: “The United States’s instruction to stop allies sharing US-derived intelligence with Ukraine is what I would expect. The US’s intelligence partners, including Britain, have had their authority to pass on intelligence revoked. The US will tightly control distribution of its intelligence to Ukraine through agencies based in Kyiv.”
Mr Trump has today already hinted he will relinquish the US’ leadership of NATO, as he continues to insist UK and France should take more responsibility for the security of the continent. It is a move his friend and adviser, Elon Musk, has reportedly recommended.
This, coupled with the temporary freeze on military aid for Ukraine, has now left the situation “very difficult” for the war-torn nation, experts say.
“We have two to three months. After that, the position will be very difficult for us. It will not be a total collapse, but we will be forced to withdraw from some areas more quickly,” a senior Ukrainian official told the Financial Times on Tuesday.
Russia currently occupies around one fifth of Ukraine, including eastern provinces and the Crimean peninsula. Ukraine is clinging on to a relatively small amount of territory it seized last year in the southern Russia province of Kursk.