WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump has paused all military aid to Ukraine following his clash with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last week, a White House official said on Monday.
“President has been clear that he is focused on peace. We need our partners to be committed to that goal as well. We are pausing and reviewing our aid to ensure that it is contributing to a solution,” said the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
Zelensky’s office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment outside office hours.
The move comes after Trump upended US policy on Ukraine and Russia upon taking office in January, adopting a more conciliatory stance toward Moscow — and after an explosive confrontation with Zelensky at the White House on Friday in which Trump criticized him for being insufficiently grateful for the Washington’s backing in the war with Russia.
On Monday Trump again said Zelensky should be more appreciative of American support after earlier responding angrily to an Associated Press report quoting Zelensky as saying the end of the war is “very, very far away.”
“This is the worst statement that could have been made by Zelensky, and America will not put up with it for much longer!” Trump wrote on Truth Social, using an alternative spelling of the Ukrainian leader’s name.
But Trump also suggested on Monday that a deal to open up Ukraine’s minerals to US investment could still be agreed despite his frustration with Kyiv, as European leaders floated proposals for a truce in Russia’s war with its neighbor.
The Trump administration views a minerals deal as America’s way of earning back some of the tens of billions of dollars it has given to Ukraine in financial and military aid since Russia invaded three years ago.
When asked on Monday if the deal was dead, Trump said at the White House: “No, I don’t think so.”
Trump described it as a “great deal for us” and said he would give an update on the situation on Tuesday night when he addresses a joint session of Congress.
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Trump halts all US military aid to Ukraine, White House official says
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Trump halts all US military aid to Ukraine, White House official says
- The move comes after Trump upended US policy on Ukraine and Russia upon taking office in January, adopting a more conciliatory stance toward Moscow
Bangladesh police deploy to guard ‘risky’ polling centers
DHAKA: Bangladesh’s police chief said Tuesday that more than 150,000 officers will be deployed for this week’s elections, warning that more than half of polling stations were flagged as vulnerable to violence.
Police records show that five people were killed and more than 600 injured in political clashes during the campaign period from December 11 to February 9.
More than 157,000 police officers, backed by 100,000 soldiers and other security forces, will guard Thursday’s vote — the first since a mass uprising toppled the autocratic government of Sheikh Hasina in 2024.
“We are 1,000 percent confident about doing our part,” Inspector General of Police Baharul Alam told reporters in Dhaka.
The country of 170 million has remained in political turmoil since the uprising against Hasina, when police carried out a deadly crackdown during her failed bid to cling to power.
Alam said police had assessed that “more than 24,000 polling centers have been marked as either high-risk or moderately risky” for possible unrest, violence or ballot stuffing — more than half of the 42,000 centers nationwide.
“The location of some centers is very remote, and there is intense competition, and hostility among candidates and their supporters,” he said, adding that 1,300 police guns looted during the 2024 unrest have still not been recovered.
“In high-risk and moderately risky centers, police will carry out patrol duty with body-worn cameras for the first time.”
Rights organization Ain o Salish Kendra counted 158 people killed and more than 7,000 injured in political violence between August 2024 and December 2025.
Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) raised concerns over the law-and-order situation, accusing parties of forming “mobs” and setting up roadblocks.
Alam said the police were determined to ensure the polls were peaceful, but said he accepted that distrust of his force remained.
“It is quite understandable why people do not trust the police,” he said. “Over the last 15 years, based on what we have delivered — in fact, for the last 150 years, our predecessors mostly beat people.”
Police records show that five people were killed and more than 600 injured in political clashes during the campaign period from December 11 to February 9.
More than 157,000 police officers, backed by 100,000 soldiers and other security forces, will guard Thursday’s vote — the first since a mass uprising toppled the autocratic government of Sheikh Hasina in 2024.
“We are 1,000 percent confident about doing our part,” Inspector General of Police Baharul Alam told reporters in Dhaka.
The country of 170 million has remained in political turmoil since the uprising against Hasina, when police carried out a deadly crackdown during her failed bid to cling to power.
Alam said police had assessed that “more than 24,000 polling centers have been marked as either high-risk or moderately risky” for possible unrest, violence or ballot stuffing — more than half of the 42,000 centers nationwide.
“The location of some centers is very remote, and there is intense competition, and hostility among candidates and their supporters,” he said, adding that 1,300 police guns looted during the 2024 unrest have still not been recovered.
“In high-risk and moderately risky centers, police will carry out patrol duty with body-worn cameras for the first time.”
Rights organization Ain o Salish Kendra counted 158 people killed and more than 7,000 injured in political violence between August 2024 and December 2025.
Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) raised concerns over the law-and-order situation, accusing parties of forming “mobs” and setting up roadblocks.
Alam said the police were determined to ensure the polls were peaceful, but said he accepted that distrust of his force remained.
“It is quite understandable why people do not trust the police,” he said. “Over the last 15 years, based on what we have delivered — in fact, for the last 150 years, our predecessors mostly beat people.”
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