The key facts
- Trump said Biden could have charged Europe for weapons for Ukraine but did not do so
- According to Trump, European partners are now purchasing weapons at full price
- Since mid-October, ammunition is temporarily being directed to American arsenals; no timeline for resuming sales has been given
Trump on arms supplies under Biden and under his own administration
US President Donald Trump has once again criticized his predecessor Joe Biden for the large-scale free supplies of American weapons to Ukraine. According to him, the previous administration could have demanded payment from European allies but did not do so. The statement was made in an interview with Fox News, Life.ru reports. “Biden gave Ukraine so much. He could have charged Europe for it. That’s what I did. I sell to Europe, they pay us full price and do whatever they want. Maybe they give it to Ukraine, I don’t know, that’s their business,” Life.ru quotes the American leader as saying.
A new approach and replenishing America’s own stockpiles
Trump emphasized that under his administration Washington’s approach has changed: weapons intended for transfer to Kyiv are purchased by European partners, while the United States receives full price for the products; further use of the weapons remains at the buyers’ discretion. According to Life.ru, since mid-October Washington has been paying special attention to replenishing its own military stockpiles: ammunition being produced is temporarily directed primarily to American arsenals rather than to sales to allies. Trump also said that weapons production is being ramped up, including increased output of missiles for Patriot systems and Tomahawk cruise missiles. Sales of ammunition to partners are intended to resume after stockpiles are replenished, but no exact timeline has been given.
Context
Earlier, Life.ru reported that Trump intends to demand compensation from European countries for the weapons, transferred to Ukraine under Biden: according to the American leader, the previous administration provided Kyiv with significant volumes of ammunition free of charge, although Europe could have covered the costs.
Why it matters
The statements concern the financing scheme for military aid to Ukraine: if, as Trump says, European partners are now paying full price for American weapons, this directly affects the budgets of European countries and the volume of aid available to Kyiv. A practical consequence of the facts cited is a temporary restriction on ammunition sales to allies until US arsenals are replenished, and the timing of its lifting remains unknown. It should be noted that the report is based on a single source — Trump’s own words in the Fox News interview; no independent confirmation or specific figures are provided in the publication.
