Ukraine suspects US restricting intelligence sharing on Russian Attacks

Ukrainians believe the US throttled back the information-sharing, allowing missiles in a first wave of attacks to get through, then reinstating the early warning system for a second wave of attacks

By Natalia Drozdiak, Courtney McBride and Daryna Krasnolutska

 

Ukrainian officials say they suspect the US is intermittently restricting intelligence sharing despite Trump administration denials, allowing Russian projectiles to strike Ukraine without warning — including in a ballistic missile attack on Sunday.

 

The Ukrainians believe the Trump administration throttled back the information-sharing, allowing missiles in a first wave of attacks to get through, then reinstating the early warning system for a second wave of attacks later in the evening, according to people familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. 

 

“Another Russian ballistic missile attack came in several waves overnight, and once again, there was no early warning from our partners,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on social media, saying Russia launched 16 ballistic missiles in an attack on Kyiv and the surrounding region.

 

The White House and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. 

 

Asked about the issue on Monday, President Donald Trump said the Ukrainian leader “doesn’t know what he’s talking about” and should have settled the war a long time ago.

 

“We share intelligence, we share a lot,” Trump told reporters. “Don’t tell me about Ukraine. We’ve given a lot to Ukraine. They’ve given us nothing.” 

 

A senior Defense Department official, who was granted anonymity to discuss policy deliberations, said Monday that there had been no shift in Pentagon policy on intelligence sharing with Ukraine.

 

The attack on Sunday was the third strike in the same week in which Ukraine was left without the usual advance warning it receives from US intelligence about incoming Russian attacks. Ukraine has also accused the US of restricting access to SpaceX’s Starshield satellite technology.

 

Ukrainian officials say the intelligence support has been unusually irregular over the last week and they have not gotten answers about why, whether it could be attributed to weather visibility or technical issues, for example.  

 

US officials have rebuffed accusations of any slowdown in intelligence to Ukraine. Trump last week said he didn’t order limitations on Ukraine’s access to Starshield.

 

In a call with Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Zelenskyy reported disruptions to US intelligence sharing about Russian ballistic missile launches, according to a readout of the call published by the senators. 

 

Zelenskyy also told the senators that Starlink services remain degraded, unable to track drones traveling at speeds above 100 miles (161 kilometers) per hour.

 

The US previously paused intelligence sharing with Ukraine in March 2025, shortly after Trump’s second term began, where he promised to end the war on “Day One.” The short-lived decision followed a disastrous Oval Office meeting among Zelenskyy, Trump and Vice President JD Vance that ended in a shouting match.

 

Trump has stepped up his criticism of Ukraine as the midterm elections approach where his Republican Party is facing the prospect of steep losses. He has accused Zelenskyy of prolonging the war, and given Russia concessions that ease its economic pain from the war it started five years ago. 

 

After a recent meeting in Miami between US and Ukrainian officials, the Ukrainians interpreted comments by US negotiators as a threat to cut off intelligence support if they didn’t stop striking Russian refineries.