U.S. ban on intelligence sharing likely contributed to Russia's Kryvyi Rih strike — Ukrainian officer

He shared his opinions on Espreso TV.

"This is just an assumption, but most likely, today’s night strike on Kryvyi Rih happened, a missile wasn’t intercepted because there was no data, and we could only spot it on approach. Our anti-aircraft missile systems’ crews might not have had time to react. These are professional people, we see this, we know this, but when there’s no data and the missile is already approaching, there’s simply not enough time to react. It’s not about the people, it’s the equipment that can’t respond when the missile is already very close to its target," he said.

Oleksiy Hetman noted that limiting aid to Ukraine is a very strange path to peace.

"Therefore, one can cautiously argue that such a decision, and now the information about four killed, means that the blood of these people and their lives are on the conscience of those who stopped supplying us with intelligence. So, this is a very strange step towards peace. Based on this logic, the more civilians die in our country, the sooner peace will come," added the National Guard Major.

• On the evening of March 5, the Russian army carried out a missile attack on a hotel in Kryvyi Rih, resulting in the deaths of four people and injuries to many others.
• CIA Director John Ratcliffe has officially announced a temporary suspension of U.S. weapons deliveries and intelligence sharing with Ukraine. However, Bloomberg, citing a Ukrainian official, claims that Kyiv is still receiving U.S. intelligence.
• On March 6, Politico reported that NATO member countries are concerned about how intelligence data exchange will proceed within the Alliance: due to actions by U.S. President Donald Trump, the situation may worsen.
• On March 6, ISW reported that halting intelligence sharing between the U.S. and Ukraine would give Russia more room to ramp up drone and missile strikes on Ukrainian cities.