U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he would ask European countries to reimburse the United States for the cost of military aid and ammunition previously sent to Ukraine amid the war with Russia, UNN reports, citing Reuters.
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In a social media post, Trump also criticized reports that U.S. ammunition stockpiles had been significantly depleted amid a separate war in Iran, adding that the United States was ramping up production and stockpiling ammunition.
"We are taking them for ourselves, the U.S., instead of selling them to others, but sales to allies will resume soon," Trump wrote.
"Hundreds of billions of dollars were given to Ukraine and NATO for free, which Europe would have paid for—if only they had been asked, but we will be asking for that money, albeit somewhat belatedly!" he added, blaming the administration of his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden.
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Last year, the United States and NATO developed an initiative called the "Prioritized Requirements List for Ukraine," under which European countries pay for the delivery of American weapons to Ukraine.
Last month, Reuters reported that the U.S. military had used a significant portion of its arsenal of high-precision, long-range missiles during the war in Iran, raising concerns about the military's readiness for future conflicts.