Volodymyr Zelensky thought he had done everything right.

When US President Donald Trump demanded that he sign away Ukraine’s mineral rights in exchange for military aid, he did it. When the White House decided that offering Moscow an unconditional ceasefire was the only way to stop the war, the Ukrainian leader quickly acquiesced. When the US asked Ukraine to hold off using NATO military equipment against targets inside Russia, it agreed.

In the end, it didn’t make any difference.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Denmark on Thursday.Credit: Getty Images

This week, Politico broke the news that the US Department of Defence (DoD) had paused key weapons deliveries already agreed to and funded by Congress under the Biden administration; this leaves Ukrainian cities defenceless against Russian missile strikes and its troops dangerously low on ammunition.

Trump has already clearly signalled his opposition to future arms shipments from the US. But cutting off arms already promised and paid for seems cruel and gratuitous.

“This decision........

© The Sydney Morning Herald