 | |
 Ukraine |  United States |
|---|---|
| Diplomatic mission | |
| Embassy of Ukraine, Washington, D.C. | Embassy of the United States, Kyiv |
| Envoy | |
| AmbassadorOlha Stefanishyna | AmbassadorBridget A. Brink |
 | This article needs to beupdated. The reason given is: The recent economic and mineral deal between Ukraine and the United States, as well as the resumption of American aid and arms transfers. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(May 2025) |
Ukraine–United States relations are the bilateral relations between Ukraine and the United States. The United States recognized the independence ofUkraine on December 25, 1991 and upgraded itsconsulate in the capital,Kyiv, to embassy status on January 21, 1992.[1]
In 2002, relations between the United States and Ukraine deteriorated after one of the recordings made during theCassette Scandal revealed an alleged transfer of a sophisticated Ukrainian defense system toSaddam Hussein'sIraq.
In 2009, the United States announced support forUkraine's bid to join NATO.[2] According to documents uncovered during theUnited States diplomatic cables leak in 2010, American diplomats consistently defended Ukrainian sovereignty in meetings with other diplomats.[3][4][5]
Following the 2014Russian annexation of Crimea, the United States began to supplymilitary aid to Ukraine[6] and became one of the largest defense partners of the country.[7][8] This increased after theRussian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with the US massively increasing its supply of military aid and remaining one of the most important military backers of Ukraine,[9] with US PresidentJoe Biden heavily condemning the invasion and pledging support to Ukraine.[10] A February 2023 Gallup poll found that the majority of Americans had a favorable view of Ukraine but the majority ofRepublicans andDemocrats believed the Russian invasion of Ukraine was a critical threat to US vital interests.[11] In December 2022, during asurprise visit to Washington D.C., Ukraine PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy gave a speech to a joint session ofCongress. He thanked Congress and the American people for the support and stated the resolve for victory in the war.[12]
In early 2025, relations significantly worsened duringDonald Trump'ssecond presidency, amid calls for peace under hisAmerica First policy, though Trump has publicly cooperated with Zelenskyy. In February 2025, Trump accused Ukraine of starting the war with Russia,[13] and a meeting that month between Trump and Zelenskyy intending to finalize a minerals deal ended in public fallout and a shouting match between the leaders before the press.[14][15] In March 2025, in a development attributed by journalists to disagreements during the meeting, the Trump administration briefly cut off all military aid and intelligence sharing to Ukraine.[16] The military aid resumed days later.
Ukrainians have generally viewed the US positively, with 80% expressing a favorable view in 2002, and 60% in 2011.[17] According to the 2012 US Global Leadership Report, 33% ofUkrainians approved of US leadership, with 26% disapproving and 41% uncertain.[18] In terms of international cooperation, the US is an observer state of theBSCE which Ukraine is a member of, and both countries are also observer states in theCBSS.
The history of informal American-Ukrainian diplomatic relations begins in 1919, when, in accordance with the resolution of theDirectorate of Ukraine and in accordance with Order No. 6 of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Extraordinary Diplomatic Mission of theUkrainian People's Republic was sent to the United States of America, headed byYevhen Holitsynsky (later replaced byYulian Bachynsky in the status of "temporary acting Chairman").
At the time, Ukrainian delegations failed to receive any support for Ukrainian War of Independence from both France and UK. Although some agreements were reached, neither of the states provided any actual support as in general their agenda was to restore Poland and unified anti-Bolshevik Russia.[19] Thus, Ukrainian representativesArnold Margolin and Teofil Okunevsky had high hopes for American mission, but in the end found it even more categorical than the French and British ones:
This meeting, which took place on June 30, made a tremendous impression on both Okunevsky and me.Lansing showed complete ignorance of the situation and blind faith inKolchak andDenikin. He categorically insisted that the Ukrainian government recognise Kolchak as the supreme ruler and leader of all anti-Bolshevik armies. When it came to the Wilson principles, the application of which was predetermined in relation to the peoples of the former Austro-Hungarian monarchy, Lansing said that he knew only about the single Russian people and that the only way to restore Russia was a federation modeled on the United States. When I tried to prove to him that the example of the United States testifies to the need for the preliminary existence of separate states as subjects for any possible agreements between them in the future, he evaded answering and began again stubbornly urging us to recognise Kolchak. [...] That's how in reality these principles were implemented. USA supported Kolchak, England – Denikin andYudenich, France – Galler... OnlyPetliura was left without any support.
— Arnold Margolin, Ukraine and Policy of the Entente (Notes of Jew and Citizen)
Without support, both theUkrainian People's Republic and theWestern Ukrainian People's Republic were unable to resist multiple invading forces and ultimately ceased to exist.Government of the Ukrainian People's Republic went into exile. In their place[a], the Bolsheviks established Soviet Ukraine, which was not recognized by the United States. In 1922, Soviet Ukraine, along with three other republics, co-founded the USSR.
| |
 Ukrainian SSR | United States |
|---|---|
Informal relations between the United States andUkrainian nationalists date back to the early days of theCold War, when theCentral Intelligence Agency (CIA) cooperated with theUkrainian independence movement in theSoviet Union, many of whom were formerfascist collaborators. In the early 1950s, the CIA dropped nearly 85 Ukrainian agents in a clandestine operation over Soviet territory, where they were supposed to spark a nationalist uprising in theUkrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. The operation proved a failure, however, and two-thirds of the agents were immediately captured or killed. The Americans, however, did not realize the failure of the operation until several years later.[20]
.jpg)
The United States enjoys cordially friendly and strategic relations with independent Ukraine and attaches great importance to the success of Ukraine's transition to ademocracy with a flourishingmarket economy.[citation needed] Following a period of economic decline characterized by high inflation and a continued reliance on state controls, theUkrainian government began taking steps in the fall of 1999 to reinvigorate economic reform that had been stalled for years due to a lack of a reform majority in the Ukrainian parliament. The Ukrainian government's stated determination to implement comprehensive economic reform is a welcome development in the eyes of the US government, and the US is committed to supporting Ukraine in continuing on this path. Bilateral relations suffered a setback in September 2002 when the federal government of the US announced it had authenticated a recording ofPresidentLeonid Kuchma's July 2000 decision to transfer aKolchuga early warning system toIraq. The Government of Ukraine denied that the transfer had occurred. Ukraine's democraticOrange Revolution has led to closer cooperation and more open dialogue between Ukraine and the United States. US policy remains centered on realizing and strengthening a democratic, prosperous, a primary recipient ofFSA assistance. Total US assistance since independence has been more than $3 billion. US assistance to Ukraine is targeted to promote political and economic reform and to address urgent humanitarian needs. The US has consistently encouraged Ukraine's transition to a democratic society with a prosperousmarket-based economy.
In November 2006, theMillennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) selected Ukraine to be eligible to apply for compact assistance. Ukraine already participates in the MCC Threshold Program, and in December 2006 signed a $45 million Threshold Program agreement. This program, which began implementation in early 2007, aims to reduce corruption in the public sector through civil society monitoring and advocacy, judicial reform, increased government monitoring and enforcement of ethical and administrative standards, streamlining and enforcing regulations, and combating corruption in higher education. Ukraine is beginning the process of developing a Compact proposal, and successful implementation of the Threshold Program will be necessary before the MCC will enter into a Compact with Ukraine.
In addition to diplomatic support in its conflict with Russia, the US provided Ukraine with US$1.5 billion inmilitary aid from 2014 to 2019.[7]
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This section is empty. You can help byadding to it.(September 2025) |
In January 2022, the US put 5,000–8,500 troops on high alert as tensions escalated in theRusso-Ukrainian War,[21] expressing willingness to further help defend Ukraine before and whenRussia launched its invasion a month later.[22][23] The United States provided nearly $1 billion inmilitary aid to Ukraine in 2021 and 2022, up to the first week of the invasion.[6] Such aid included offensive weapons and sharing intelligence with the Ukrainian military.[9][24][25] Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly sent thanks to American leaders for the support.[26][27]
In the2022 State of the Union Address, which was attended by Ukrainian AmbassadorOksana Markarova, US PresidentJoe Biden heavily criticized the invasion and pledged American support for Ukraine. American public opinion also heavily shifted towards supporting Ukraine following the invasion.[28]
| External videos | |
|---|---|
 Zelenskyy's address to a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress, December 21, 2022,C-SPAN |
In May 2022, the US Senate confirmedBridget Brink to serve as ambassador to coincide with the reopening of the US embassy in Kyiv after it had closed due to the invasion.[29] On December 21, 2022, Zelenskyy made his first foreign trip since the invasion to Washington DC. After meeting with President Biden, he gave a speech to a joint session of congress. The speech included references toFranklin D. Roosevelt'sdeclaration of war on Japan and thanked the American congress and people for their support of Ukraine.[30] On February 20, 2023, President Biden conducted an unannounced visit of Kyiv.[31][32][33]
In 2022, Congress approved more than $112 billion to help Ukraine in its war with Russia. At the end of 2023, theBiden administration requested $61.4 billion more for Ukraine for the year ahead.[34]
In April 2024, Ukraine received small arms and ammunition from Washington, which were intercepted while en route from Iranian forces to rebels in Yemen supported by Tehran.[35] On April 20, 2024, the US House of Representatives approved a $95 billion aid package to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.[36]
The US debated granting Ukraine permission to use long-range weapons within Russia. US officials did not believe that Ukraine had enoughATACMS and BritishStorm Shadow missiles to alter the course of the war, according toThe New York Times.[37] In September 2024, reporting renewed over a potential lifting of restrictions on Ukraine's use of Western long-range weapons on Russian territory.[38] Biden met with British prime ministerKeir Starmer on September 13 over the issue, though no official announcement was made.[39]
On November 17,US PresidentJoe Biden finally lifts restrictions on the Ukrainian use of U.S. weapons (includingATACMS), finally allowing Ukraine to uselong-range missiles to strike deep inside Russia, withUkrainian forces starting to use the weapons in long-distance attacks on November 19.[40]
In December 2024, President Zelenskyy resisted pressure from the Biden administration tolower the conscription age to 18 to replace Ukraine'sbattlefield losses.[41] In February 2025, he said that Ukraine would introduce special military contracts for volunteers aged 18 to 24.[42]
.jpg)
In February 2025, Trump described Zelenskyy as a dictator and stated that Ukraine had started the war.[43]
According toReuters, during talks inRiyadh on February 18, 2025, about ending the war in Ukraine, a "working dialogue" was established between the United States and Russia.[44] Ukraine raised concerns that they were not invited to these discussions.[44]
French PresidentEmmanuel Macron met with Trump in the Oval Office on February 24, 2025, where they discussed the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.[45] Macron's approach included a truce, then a peace settlement to ensure that Ukraine has long-term security guarantees for Ukraine.[45] In contrast, President Trump called for a ceasefire with the United States negotiating directly with Russia.[45]
In February 2025, the United States offered to take control of 50 percent of Ukraine's vital minerals in exchange for security guarantees to Ukraine against Russia. Zelenskyy has instructed his ministers not to sign aproposed agreement because the document was too focused on US interests.[46][47]
In February 2025, Ukraine and its European allies made it clear that they were concerned that PresidentDonald Trump had unilaterally opened negotiations with Putin and apparently made concessions to Russia.[48]
On February 16, US Secretary of StateMarco Rubio stated that Ukraine and Europe would be part of any "real negotiations" to end the war.[49][50] President Donald Trump said on the same day that the Ukrainian President Zelenskyy "will be involved" in peace negotiations.[51] On February 18, American and Russian delegations, headed by Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign MinisterSergey Lavrov, respectively, met inRiyadh,Saudi Arabia, in order to develop a framework for furtherpeace negotiations on the war in Ukraine.[52] Ukraine was not invited to the talks in Saudi Arabia.[53] Rubio was accompanied by US National Security AdvisorMike Waltz and Special EnvoySteve Witkoff.[52]
On February 24, the US voted against aUN General Assemblyresolution condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine.[54] Alongside this resolution, the USintroduced a separate resolution in the General Assembly which was worded in neutral terms. However, this resolution was significantly changed after several amendments, and Russia voted against it.[55] The US later re-introduced that resolution in the Security Council,which ultimately approved it.[56]
On February 27, Trump extended a series ofsanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine for one year.[57]
AFebruary 28, 2025, meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy in theWhite House failed to reach an agreement on the potential minerals deal that the two countries had considered.[58] Trump told Zelenskyy that Zelenskyy was "gambling with World War III, and what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country, this country that’s backed you far more than a lot of people say they should have" and the Ukrainian delegation was asked to leave the White House.[58] According to several news outlets, this public spat was a catastrophic deterioration of relations between the countries, and a "beyond the worst-case scenario for Ukraine"[59] and "Everything was ready for the signing of the mineral agreement, followed by a press conference. The tables were set, pens were on the tables, but everything fell apart."[60] According toThe Washington Post, on the day after the meeting, Trump was considering halting all military aid to Ukraine, citing sources from an administration official.[61] Then, three days after the meeting, the U.S. suspended all military aid to Ukraine.[62] A few days after that, the U.S. cut off its intelligence sharing with Ukraine.[63]
On March 11, U.S. and Ukrainian officials met inJeddah, Saudi Arabia, during which Ukraine accepted the U.S.'s proposal for a 30-day ceasefire. As part of the agreement, the U.S. resumed all military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine, while Rubio said that a peace agreement now relied on Russia's approval of the ceasefire, saying that "The ball is now in their court."[64]
On April 24, Trump criticized Russia's missile and drone attack on Kiev and Putin's determination to continue the war against Ukraine.[65] In June 2025, a majority ofU.S. senators supportedsecondary sanctions against Russia in order to increase pressure on Putin to stop the war in Ukraine.[66] On June 25, Trump said he was considering sending morePatriot missile batteries to Ukraine to protect Kiev from Russian attacks.[67]
On July 14, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a major policy reversal by agreeing to send Patriot air‑defense missile systems to Ukraine, financed and reimbursed byNATO and EU allies. He also threatened to impose 100%tariffs and secondary sanctions on countries purchasing Russian oil if Russia did not agree to a ceasefire within 50 days.[68] On August 1, 2025, Trump condemned the Russian attack on Kyiv as "disgusting."[69]
In September 2025, the Trump administration approved the delivery of up to $10 billion worth of weapons to Ukraine from US stockpiles, which would be paid for by NATO allies.[70] Trump called Russia an "aggressor."[71] On September 27, 2025, President Zelenskyy announced a $90 billion arms agreement with the United States.[72]
In late October 2025, the seventh Ukraine Action Summit organized byAmerican Coalition for Ukraine convened in Washington, D.C., bringing together over 700 U.S.-based delegates to advocate for continued American support of Ukraine’s defense and reconstruction.[73]
During the Ukrainian independence movement, on August 1, 1991, then-US-PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush made aspeech critical of the movement whichJames Carafano subsequently described as "what may have been the worst speech ever by an American chief executive".[74]
On February 18, 2009, theVerkhovna Rada of Crimea sent a letter to theCabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and thePresident of Ukraine in which it stated that it deemed it inexpedient to open a representative office of theUnited States inCrimea and it urged the Ukrainian leadership to give up this idea. The letter will also be sent[when?] to theChairman of the UN General Assembly. The letter was passed in a 77 to 9 roll-call vote with one abstention.[75]
In 2012 theUnited States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations passed Resolution 466, calling for the unconditional release ofpolitical prisonerYulia Tymoshenko and implemented a visa ban against those responsible.[76] The resolution condemned the administration of Ukrainian PresidentViktor Yanukovych (in office from 2010 to 2014) and askedNATO to suspend all cooperative agreements with Ukraine.[77] In response, First DeputyGeneral Prosecutor of UkraineRenat Kuzmin wrote a letter to US PresidentBarack Obama, complaining that his visa was revoked.[78]
Following the success of theEuromaidan protests, United States Assistant Secretary of StateVictoria Nuland stated that the United States had "invested" $5 billion to bring about a "secure and prosperous and democratic Ukraine."[79] The Euromaidan resulted in the election of the pro-EU presidentPetro Poroshenko and then theAnnexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation in 2014. Poroshenko requested military aid from the United States. PresidentBarack Obama was reluctant to arm a relatively corrupt military that was recently used against anti-democracy protestors, and saw the mistaken shoot-down ofMalaysia Airlines Flight 17 by Russian-armed separatists as an example of the dangers of supplying arms to Ukraine.[6] Though the US had sanctioned Russia and refused to recognize the annexation, after a year Obama declined to provide the requested lethal aid (such asFGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missiles andF-16 fighter jets).[6] The Obama administration did supply $600 million of non-lethal military aid from 2014 to 2016, including vehicles, training, body armor, and night-vision goggles.[6]
In 2017, PresidentDonald Trump approved $47 million of Javelin anti-tank missile and missile launchers; these were not allowed to be deployed but kept in storage as a strategic deterrent against Russian invasion.[6]
In 2018 theUS House of Representatives passed a provision blocking any training ofAzov Battalion of theUkrainian National Guard by American forces, citing its neo-Nazi background. In previous years, between 2014 and 2017, the US House of Representatives passed amendments banning support of Azov, but due to pressure from thePentagon, the amendments were quietly lifted.[80][81][82]
On April 25, 2018, 57 members of the House of Representatives, led byRo Khanna,[83] released a condemnation ofHolocaust distortion in Ukraine.[84] They criticized Ukraine's2015 memory laws glorifyingUkrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and its leaders, such asRoman Shukhevych.[85] The condemnation came in an open bipartisan letter to Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan.[86]
In summer 2019, Trump froze $400 million in military aid to Ukraine which had been approved by Congress,[6] an aid package which was the subject of ascandal stemming from a phone call that Trump had with Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy on July 25. On August 12, 2019, an anonymouswhistleblower submitted a complaint to US Inspector GeneralMichael Atkinson that stated that Trump had attempted to pressure Zelenskyy into launching an investigation on former US Vice PresidentJoe Biden and his sonHunter Biden during the phone call.[87] On September 24, 2019, theUnited States House of Representatives initiated animpeachment inquiry against Trump.[88] Trump held a meeting with Zelenskyy inNew York City on September 25, where they both stated that there was no pressuring during the July phone call and that nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.[89] Trump was impeached by the House, but later acquitted in the Senate trial and continued as President until the end of his term.
From May 2019 to May 2022 the USA did not have an ambassador to Ukraine.[90][91][29]
The United States had pledged $2.175 billion in military aid to Ukraine, which included the Ground Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB), a new rocket doubling the country's strike range in its conflict with Russia. The aid package also funded other weapons and equipment, such as air defense firing units, counter-drone systems, and precision-guided munitions. Since the invasion by Russian forces, the United States had pledged over $29.3 billion in security assistance to Ukraine.[92]
In early February 2023, 11 House Republicans led by Florida Rep.Matt Gaetz, introduced what they called the "Ukraine Fatigue Resolution" (H.Res. 113), calling on Biden to end military and financial aid to Ukraine while pressuring Ukraine and Russia to agree on a peace agreement.[93]
In fall 2023, US public support for arming Ukraine in its war against Russia significantly dropped. Support for US weapon shipments to Ukraine dropped from 46% to 41% compared to a poll taken in May 2023. Both sides of the political spectrum saw a decline. Since the counteroffensive started in June 2023, Ukrainian forces have only retaken a series of small villages and settlements and are only in control of a small percentage of the territories occupied by Russian forces.[94]
Between July and October 2025, American public opinion toward Ukraine improved markedly, particularly regarding support for military assistance. According to the Harvard CAPS/Harris Poll conducted in early July (July 6–8), 65% of registered voters supported the United States providing weapons to Ukraine and imposing sanctions on Russia if Moscow refused to participate in peace negotiations.[95] By October 1–2, this figure had increased to 68%, demonstrating sustained and growing backing for a robust US response to Russian aggression.[96] The most dramatic shift occurred among Republican voters, whose support for military aid to Ukraine surged from 30% in March 2025 to 51% by late July—a 21-percentage-point increase—according to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs survey conducted July 18–30.[97] This bipartisan convergence extended to sanctions policy, with the October Harvard poll showing that 77% of voters overall—including 71% of Democrats and 86% of Republicans—supported additional economic sanctions against Russia to pressure Moscow to end the war.[98] The October poll also revealed that 79% of voters believed Europe should stop purchasing Russian oil and instead buy from the United States, reflecting both strategic and economic considerations in American attitudes toward the conflict.[99]
Bohodukhiv, Kharkiv Oblast –
Boyertown, PennsylvaniaBrovary, Kyiv Oblast –Rockford, IllinoisChernivtsi –Salt Lake City, UtahChyhyryn, Cherkasy Oblast –Sebastopol, CaliforniaDolyna, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast –Prairie Village, KansasDonetsk –Pittsburgh, PennsylvaniaDrohobych, Lviv Oblast –Muscatine, Iowa andBuffalo, New YorkHorlivka, Donetsk Oblast –Pensacola, Florida and Buffalo, New YorkIvano-Frankivsk –Arlington County, VirginiaKalush, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast –Grand Prairie, TexasKaniv, Cherkasy Oblast –Sonoma, CaliforniaKharkiv –Cincinnati, OhioKhmelnyskyi –Modesto, CaliforniaKrasnodon, Luhansk Oblast –Birmingham, AlabamaKyiv –Chicago, IllinoisLviv –Corning, New York andParma, OhioOdesa –Baltimore, MarylandPoltava –Irondequoit, New YorkSmila, Cherkasy Oblast –Newton, IowaTysmenytsia, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast –Bandera, TexasUzhhorod, Zakarpattia Oblast –Corvallis, OregonVinnytsia –Birmingham, AlabamaBakhmut, Donetsk Oblast –Omaha, NebraskaBerdiansk, Zaporizhzhia Oblast –Lowell, MassachusettsBerezhany, Ternopil Oblast –Wethersfield, ConnecticutCherkasy –Des Moines, Iowa andSanta Rosa, CaliforniaKalush, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast –Little Rock, ArkansasKamianets-Podilskyi, Khmelnytskyi Oblast –Athens, GeorgiaKherson –Kent, WashingtonHorishni Plavni, Poltava Oblast –Ithaca, New YorkKonotop, Sumy Oblast –Helena, Montana andSkokie, IllinoisKorsun-Shevchenkivskyi, Cherkasy Oblast –Marshalltown, IowaKremenchuk, Poltava Oblast –Providence, Rhode IslandMyrhorod, Poltava Oblast –Randolph, VermontRubizhne, Luhansk Oblast –Louisville, KentuckyShpola, Cherkasy Oblast –Oskaloosa, IowaSimferopol, Crimea –Salem, OregonSlavutych, Kyiv Oblast –Richland, WashingtonSvitlovodsk Kirovohrad Oblast –Springfield, IllinoisTernopil –Yonkers, New YorkUman, Cherkasy Oblast –Davis, CaliforniaYalta, Crimea –Santa Barbara, California
.jpg)
This article incorporatespublic domain material fromU.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets.United States Department of State. availablehere
| Africa |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Americas | ||
| Asia | ||
| Europe |
| |
| Oceania | ||
| Multilateral relations | ||
| Disputes | ||
| Diplomatic missions | ||
| Related | ||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
