Brink stated that Trump’s decision had put US diplomats in Ukraine at risk
Bridget Brink made these remarks in comments to Reuters.
Former US Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink stated that US President Donald Trump’s decision in March 2025 to suspend military aid to Ukraine had put not only Ukrainians at risk.
According to her, risks also arose for the staff of the US embassy in Kyiv, which numbered around 1,000 people.
Reuters notes that for Brink, the rift between the Trump administration and US diplomats around the world was potentially a matter of life and death.
Pause in military aid
Brink was the US ambassador in Kyiv when Donald Trump returned to the presidency.
In March 2025, a few days after Trump’s high-profile meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House, the US suspended military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine.
Among the aid that was put on hold were air defence systems. These helped protect not only Ukrainians but also US embassy staff from Russian drones and missiles.
“I had 1,000 people, all civilians, on the ground. And we were being defended by Ukrainians using American and other equipment,” said Brink.
According to her, the suspension of military aid took place without warning.
“When we tried to find out why it had been stopped, we received no answer,” she said.
Where the ambassador turned
Brink said she had approached the Pentagon, the State Department and the White House.
She said the embassy had tried to get to the bottom of the situation “everywhere they could”, as they were concerned not only about the consequences for Ukraine but also about their own safety.
Reuters notes that the Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment on her remarks.
Brink also reported that her staff had been working behind the scenes to persuade the Trump administration to resume aid.
The administration agreed to this on 11 March.
At the same time, Brink said she had never received an official explanation as to why the aid had been suspended.
Coordination issues in Washington
Reuters reports that the shake-up at the US National Security Council, which traditionally coordinates foreign and defence policy within the White House, has further strained relations between the Trump administration and embassies.
In 2025, Trump reduced the NSC’s staff from hundreds to a few dozen.
According to three current and former US officials in Washington, for several months NSC staff did not hold regular meetings and were effectively unable to organise interagency meetings on national security and foreign policy issues.
A White House spokesperson stated that the NSC had not ceased holding regular or interagency meetings, but that they had become smaller in scale and focused on Trump’s priorities.
How diplomats sought signals
According to many officials, during that period, staff received few official directives on such important topics as the war in Ukraine or the future of NATO.
Instead, they closely monitored Trump’s Truth Social account, looking for political signals there.
Officials told Reuters that many NSC staff kept Trump’s account open on a separate screen and reacted quickly to his new posts.
What has changed under Biden
Reuters notes that during Joe Biden’s presidency, Brink regularly attended NSC meetings.
These meetings were necessary to develop and coordinate wartime policy between Washington and the embassy in Kyiv.
According to Brink, such meetings ceased during the Trump era.
Instead, she was told to “just ring people up”. She described this ad-hoc approach as ineffective in a conflict zone where Russian attacks were a regular occurrence.
“We’re seven hours ahead and spend almost every night in the bunker,” Brink said, referring to the time difference between Ukraine and the US.
Brink’s resignation
The final straw, according to Brink, was Trump’s policy of “appeasement” towards Ukraine.
This refers to the desire to forge closer ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin whilst simultaneously blaming Ukraine for Russian aggression.
In April 2025, Brink resigned in protest.
Two months later, she announced that she would stand as a candidate for the US House of Representatives for the Democratic Party of Michigan.
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