Official who blocked aid to Ukraine confirmed to key Pentagon post
Illustrative photo: The Pentagon may suspend aid to Ukraine (Getty Images)
The US Senate has confirmed Michael Duffey as Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. He had previously called for a pause in military aid to Ukraine, Reuters reports.
The Senate confirmed Duffey by a vote of 51 to 45. Trump-aligned Republicans supported his appointment to the position responsible for the Pentagon’s weapons programs.
The vote took place on the same day that Head of the Ukrainian Presidential Office Andriy Yermak arrived in Washington for a visit, accompanied by the First Deputy Prime Minister and other government officials.
Who is Michael Duffey
During Donald Trump’s first presidential term, an email revealed that while serving as a senior White House official in the Office of Management and Budget, Michael Duffey instructed the US Department of Defense to suspend security assistance to Ukraine that had already been approved by Congress. Following this, Democrats sought to subpoena Duffey to testify in the matter.
The investigation ultimately led to President Trump’s first impeachment and focused on his demand that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy launch an investigation into Trump’s political rival, Joe Biden, who was serving as US Vice President at the time.
Democrats who initiated the impeachment argued that Trump froze the aid to pressure Zelenskyy’s government into agreeing to the investigation.
The president denied any wrongdoing and accused Democrats of trying to overturn his 2016 election victory. Most Republicans in Congress called the impeachment process unfair.
Donald Trump's peace efforts
During his second term, Donald Trump has been exerting significant pressure on Ukraine, including temporarily suspending military aid, in an effort to push the country toward negotiating with Russia. So far, these efforts have not resulted in a ceasefire or meaningful progress toward a broader peace agreement.
On June 2, a second round of peace talks between Ukraine and Russia took place in Istanbul.
During the meeting, the delegations discussed the possibility of a ceasefire.
In addition, both sides agreed on a new exchange of certain categories of prisoners under the all-for-all formula, as well as a swap of fallen soldiers’ bodies based on a 6,000-for-6,000 formula.
