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2 NEWS maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 5 MARCH 2025 2 Trump temporarily suspends US military aid to Ukraine US President Donald Trump on Monday temporarily sus- pended the delivery of all U.S. military aid to Ukraine, senior administration and military officials said. The move comes days after Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had an explosive confrontation at the White House. The order affects more than $1 billion in arms and ammuni- tion in the pipeline and on order. It resulted from a series of meetings at the White House on Monday between Trump and his senior national security aides, the officials said. The officials said the directive would be in effect until Trump determined that Ukraine had demonstrated a good-faith com- mitment to peace negotiations with Russia. Trump's decision dramatically escalates the breach between Washington and Kyiv, at a critical moment in the conflict. The most immediate beneficiary of the move is President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia. If the suspension is lengthy, he can use the time to press for further territorial gains. And he may well decide to hold back from any negotiations at all, figuring that any prolonged dis- pute between Trump and Zelensky will only strengthen his position, either on the battlefield or when cease-fire talks ever take place. The suspension also puts the United States in direct oppo- sition to its major NATO allies. Most of the largest European nations, led by France, Britain and Germany, have pledged to step up aid to Ukraine in recent days, siding with Zelensky in his dispute with the Trump administration. But they simply do not have the stockpiles to make up the difference in the short term. Trump's directive also halts deliveries of equipment from Pentagon stockpiles as aid through the Ukraine Security As- sistance Initiative, which provides funds that Kyiv can use only to buy new military hardware directly from U.S. defence com- panies. It was unclear what exactly Zelensky would need to do for Mr. Trump to resume the military assistance Trump claimed that Zelensky's stance was "disrespectful" to the US and could escalate tensions to a global conflict CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 She declared the continent has entered "an era of rearmament" in response to escalating securi- ty threats. Von der Leyen, speaking ahead of Thursday's European Council meeting, emphasised the urgency of strengthening Europe's defence capabilities, citing mounting geopolitical tensions, particularly in light of Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine and concerns over the future of U.S. support for NATO. "The question is no longer whether Europe's security is threatened in a very real way," von der Leyen said. "The real question in front of us is wheth- er Europe is prepared to act as decisively as the situation dic- tates." In a letter to EU leaders, von der Leyen outlined the "ReArm Europe" plan, a comprehen- sive set of proposals aimed at unlocking financial resources to support national defence investments both in the short term and over the next decade. The initiative consists of five key measures designed to strengthen Europe's defence capabilities and bolster mili- tary support for Ukraine. Unlocking fiscal space for defence A core component of the plan involves adjusting EU fiscal rules to allow member states to ramp up defence spending without triggering budgetary penalties. Von der Leyen announced that the European Commis- sion will propose activating the national escape clause of the Stability and Growth Pact, en- abling governments to expand their military budgets without breaching EU deficit limits. "If Member States were to in- crease their defence spending by 1.5% of GDP on average, this could create fiscal space of close to €650 billion over four years," she said. New €150 billion defence investment fund Another key element of the plan is the creation of a €150 billion loan program to help EU countries jointly invest in criti- cal military assets. The initiative aims to enhance collective pro- curement efforts, reduce costs, and improve interoperability across European armed forces. "We are talking about pan-Eu- ropean capability domains: air and missile defence, artillery systems, missiles and ammuni- tion, drones and anti-drone sys- tems, as well as cyber defence and military mobility," von der Leyen said. Joint procurement efforts un- der this scheme would not only reinforce EU security but also allow member states to provide Ukraine with additional mili- tary aid, she said. Von der Leyen also proposed leveraging the EU budget to support defence related invest- ments. She announced member states would be given additional incentives to use cohesion pol- icy programmes to boost mili- tary spending. The final two pillars of the ReArm Europe plan focus on attracting private sector in- vestment in defence through initiatives such as the Savings and Investment Union and in- creased involvement from the European Investment Bank. "We will continue working closely with our partners in NATO," von der Leyen said. "This is Europe's moment, and we are ready to step up." €800 billion 'ReArm Europe' plan to increase defence spending across EU announced Ursula von der Leyen, speaking ahead of Thursday's European Council meeting, emphasised the urgency of strengthening Europe's defence capabilities, citing mounting geopolitical tensions