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U.S. weapons procurement for Ukraine through the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List, or PURL, mechanism is continuing, Washington’s ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker told Agence France-Presse (AFP) late Monday, rejecting reports of a change to the program.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Warsaw Security Forum, Whitaker said he did not want to comment directly on “unconfirmed reports” that the Trump administration had threatened to halt weapons supplies if Kyiv continued striking Russian energy infrastructure.
“I don’t think that’s consistent with what I know today, which is that the United States continues to sell our equipment and munitions to our European and Canadian allies that then provide it to Ukraine,” Whitaker said.
“I know of no change to that programme.”
The Financial Times reported that the Trump administration had threatened to halt the PURL mechanism unless Ukraine stopped strikes on Russian oil refineries.
Under the system, Ukraine receives U.S. equipment purchased by Washington’s NATO allies.
The reported dispute comes as U.S. gasoline prices have risen ahead of the midterm elections. President Donald Trump has turned to Russia, a major oil producer, as a possible source of relief and on Sunday announced an “energy ceasefire,” days after easing sanctions on Moscow to allow diesel exports.
Whitaker acknowledged that equipment availability under the PURL program was currently lagging, particularly for air defense systems.
“Air defence largely is in high demand, and the availability is probably not as good as we would like,” he said.
He said companies were developing new approaches to intercept incoming projectiles and expressed confidence that the problem could be resolved.
“I think it’s a short-term challenge,” Whitaker said.
He also warned that timing remained critical as Ukraine approaches winter.
“Ukraine is facing a winter where, if there is not an energy ceasefire ... their electricity and heating infrastructure could be under a lot of pressure,” he said.
Whitaker said Washington was working with allies that possess air defense systems to move them into Ukraine as quickly as possible.
“We’ll continue to every day work on it, try to find available inventory, and then increase production on both sides of the Atlantic,” he said.
Whitaker’s comments came as European allies await the outcome of a formal review of the U.S. military presence in Europe amid concerns that Washington could reduce its forces on the continent.
He said the U.S. wanted to ensure that any changes would not create “security gaps” in Europe’s existing security architecture.
At the same time, Whitaker said Washington would continue promoting what he called “NATO 3.0, which is Europe-led.”
European countries have been increasing military spending after agreeing last year to Trump’s demand that NATO allies devote 5% of gross domestic product to security-related spending by 2035.
“We are very pleased with how Europe has stepped up,” Whitaker said.
“Is it perfect? Certainly not. Do we have certain allies that probably could do more? Yes. But we have a lot of allies that are doing a lot.”
Whitaker said Washington was “in a good place with the overall force posture and basing review.”
The review is expected to be presented to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth next month, though it remains unclear when the findings will be made public.
Whitaker pointed to a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting in Brussels in early December, suggesting Secretary of State Marco Rubio could potentially make an announcement there.
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