Pentagon chief halted critical weapons shipments without authorization, causing diplomatic confusion and costing millions
A week into President Donald Trump’s second term, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued an unauthorized order that abruptly canceled 11 flights carrying crucial weapons to Ukraine, catching top White House officials completely off guard and triggering diplomatic chaos, according to a bombshell Reuters investigation.
The verbal directive from Hegseth’s office, transmitted through the Pentagon’s Joint Staff to U.S. Transportation Command (TRANSCOM), halted shipments of artillery shells and ammunition that were already loaded and awaiting departure from Dover Air Force Base in Delaware and Al Udeid military base in Qatar.
Within hours, Ukrainian officials in Kyiv and Polish authorities coordinating the shipments frantically sought answers from Washington. But according to multiple sources, even senior national security officials in the White House, Pentagon, and State Department were unable to explain the sudden policy shift.
Documents reviewed by Reuters reveal the canceled flights cost American taxpayers $2.2 million, though TRANSCOM later claimed the figure was $1.6 million as one flight incurred no charge. More significantly, the action came at a critical moment when Ukrainian forces were struggling against Russian advances in eastern Ukraine and the disputed Kursk region.
The cancellation order followed a January 30 Oval Office meeting on Ukraine policy attended by Hegseth and other senior officials. While the idea of pausing aid was discussed, three sources familiar with the meeting confirm President Trump issued no directive to halt assistance. Two White House sources and another with direct knowledge stated the president was unaware of Hegseth’s subsequent order.
“This is consistent with the administration’s policy to move fast, break things and sort it out later,” explained Mark Cancian, a defense expert with the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “That is great for Silicon Valley. But when you’re talking about institutions that have been around for hundreds of years, you are going to run into problems.”
According to sources with knowledge of the meeting, Hegseth arrived at the Oval Office with a memo drafted by advisers advocating for pausing weapons deliveries to Ukraine as leverage in peace negotiations with Russia. After the meeting where Trump declined to halt aid, Hegseth’s office proceeded to cancel the shipments anyway without proper interagency coordination.
The multiday pause ended only after National Security Adviser Mike Waltz reportedly intervened to reverse the cancellations. The flights resumed by February 5, less than a week after they were halted. A formal White House announcement pausing military aid authorized under the Biden administration wasn’t made until March 4—a full month after Hegseth’s unauthorized action.
When asked to comment, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt claimed Hegseth had followed a directive from Trump to pause aid, contradicting multiple sources who said the president issued no such order. “Negotiating an end to the Russia-Ukraine War has been a complex and fluid situation,” Leavitt said. “The bottom line is the war is much closer to an end today than it was when President Trump took office.”
The incident highlights growing factional divisions within the administration over Ukraine policy. Sources describe a Pentagon divided between officials supporting continued assistance to Ukraine and a cadre of staffers aligned with an “America-first” approach who have advocated pulling back U.S. involvement abroad.
This revelation comes amid broader upheaval at the Pentagon, where several of Hegseth’s top advisers were recently escorted from the building after being accused of unauthorized disclosure of classified information. This includes Dan Caldwell, one of Hegseth’s chief Ukraine policy advisers, who denies responsibility for any leaks.
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