Rubio Admits Ukraine Interceptors May Not Have Been Delivered While Rejecting Zelensky Accusations

Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged Monday that a batch of interceptor missiles purchased for Ukraine under the PURL program may never have been delivered, while firmly pushing back on accusations from Kyiv that Washington is deliberately withholding weapons and intelligence. Zelensky had publicly accused the United States of deliberately delaying the delivery of interceptors and said Ukraine received no early warning of recent powerful Russian missile strikes, a charge Rubio called "scandalous" and "simply not true." Rubio attributed the lack of warning to a technical matter rather than a policy decision, and said the Pentagon had not changed anything on Ukraine policy or intelligence sharing.

Rubio defended the overall U.S. posture by explaining that many countries seek interceptors from the United States and that Washington must weigh Ukraine's needs against those of other allies and its own military. He added that President Trump is frustrated by accusations that his administration is harming Ukraine, and repeated the U.S. position that the war must end through negotiation rather than on the battlefield.

Elsewhere, France remained the focus of international attention after a weekend of widespread rioting and looting that included the torching of Limoges City Hall and more than 2,400 arrests. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz pointed to migration, poorly integrated communities, and growing support for extremist parties as underlying causes of the unrest across Europe. Betting markets moved sharply in response to the violence, with Marine Le Pen's odds of winning the next French presidential election rising above 50 percent on Kalshi while Jean-Luc Melenchon dropped below 9 percent. Trump, speaking at a rally in Kansas, linked the French unrest to immigration and criticized Democrats as his party faces a difficult midterm environment.

The UK announced it would fly Royal Air Force defensive air missions to protect Saudi Arabia from Houthi attacks, marking a new commitment of British military support in the region. Separately, Reuters reported that senior Iranian officials are deliberately prolonging nuclear talks with the United States to deny Trump a diplomatic win before the November midterms, while Tehran braces for what it believes could be imminent renewed U.S. and Israeli strikes. Libya's eastern-aligned parliament also approved a maritime border delimitation agreement with Turkey, a move likely to draw strong objections from Greece.