The United States has stopped sharing intelligence with Ukraine, CIA Director John Ratcliffe said. Intelligence provided by America is believed to be key to Ukraine's ability to strike deep into Russia using missiles such as Storm Shadow and Atacms, as well as to detect Russian forces behind enemy lines. However, experts note that "the oil refineries are not moving."
The United States has stopped sharing intelligence with Ukraine, CIA Director John Ratcliffe said. Intelligence provided by America is believed to be key to Ukraine's ability to strike deep into Russia using missiles such as Storm Shadow and Atacms, as well as to detect Russian forces behind enemy lines. However, experts note that "the oil refineries are not moving."
Three sources also confirmed to Reuters that US intelligence sharing had stopped, but it was not entirely clear by how much it had been reduced, the news agency noted.
One source said intelligence sharing had only been "partially" suspended, but could not provide further details.
According to a U.S. official familiar with the decision, who spoke on condition of anonymity to Bloomberg, the suspension applies to all intelligence information except that which Ukraine needs to protect its forces.
US National Security Adviser Mike Walz said Wednesday morning that the US has "taken a step back" and that the administration is "reviewing all aspects" of its intelligence relationship with Ukraine.
At the same time, the British newspaper The Guardian writes that experts noted that the impact of US restrictions on intelligence sharing with Ukraine will depend in part on what exactly was stopped, and emphasized that Kyiv is already more capable than Washington estimates.
A Western expert familiar with Ukraine's warfighting said Kyiv was already heavily using open sources and human intelligence data to identify Russian targets in the rear, and was not particularly dependent on the US for information about targets.
Citing an example, the expert said that “oil refineries are not moving,” referring to frequent targets of attacks by Ukrainian long-range drones. “Donald Trump might be surprised to find that when he pulls the levers, they have little effect,” the expert added.
But the United States has not notified allies of the cessation of intelligence activities, according to an Eastern European official familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reported. The official said allies would try to compensate for any such cessation of information.
Asked whether the UK could act as a mediator in intelligence sharing with Ukraine, Prime Minister Keir Starmer's press secretary, Dave Pares, said the UK was "working to do everything we can to put Ukraine in as strong a position as possible."
