The after shocks of the Zelensky Trump meet are now beginning to be felt. Post the public verbal spat between the two leaders no immediate deal or compromise has been agreed, and the trip has come down as a damp squib, with no positive outcome for any side. On the other hand it seems Ukraine will now have to manage the negative impact of the disastrous visit. The US State Department has now terminated a US Agency for International Development (USAID) initiative for a large-scale effort to restore Ukraine’s energy grid, which has been severely damaged by Russian strikes, NBC News has reported.
USAID, Washington’s primary agency for funding political projects abroad has been under severe criticism since the President Donald Trump administration took over. Now day in and out Trump and his team expose the vast sums of American taxpayer money that have changed hands on the pretext off aid being given to nations across the globe. Trump along with Musk have accused the agency of corruption and inefficiency, following which the US President imposed a 90-day funding freeze on USAID and transferred oversight of its programs to the direct control of the State Department.
As part of the crackdown, the State Department not only stopped a USAID program that invested hundreds of millions of dollars in Ukraine’s power grid, but also sharply reduced the agency’s footprint in Ukraine, the network said.
Before the reported cuts, 64 American government employees and contractors were on the ground supporting the agency’s mission; now only eight are expected to remain, with the Trump administration placing the remaining USAID personnel on administrative leave and ordering all but “critical” staff to return to the US, NBC reported.
It significantly undercuts this administration’s abilities to negotiate on the ceasefire, and it’d signal to Russia that we don’t care about Ukraine or our past investments,” a USAID official working on the Ukraine mission told the outlet, adding that the decision would significantly undermine the country’s economic resilience. In 2024 alone, USAID allocated $825 million to support Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
Impact on Ukraine
The move comes as Russia continues to carry out drone and missile strikes on Ukraine’s defense-linked energy infrastructure to undermine the country’s military effort, resulting in massive blackouts across the country that have been hampering Ukraine.
The timing of the reported USAID pullout coincides with a meeting between Trump and Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky in the White House, in which the US president accused Zelensky of being ungrateful for the substantial aid provided to Kiev, and of being unwilling to negotiate an end to the conflict with Russia.
A visibly irate Zelensky doubled down and went on to accost the US President and Vice President who were not having any of it. The result was a spectacular fallout in front of the global media as Zelensky reportedly left the country without signing the much touted mineral deal or making any progress on the peace deal.
Meanwhile, Trump in his statements has declared that he believes the Ukraine President has been behaving so obtusely due to the fact that he knows the US administration is behind him. Now it seems these moves to cut down the funding and backing of important basic infrastructure of Kiev will force Zelensky’s hand. Zelensky will then either have to look for alternative options or come down from his grandstanding. Either way, so far the much awaited meeting is serving only as a huge detriment to the Ukrainian people.
