Rubio Denies Any Pause in US Intelligence Sharing With Ukraine, Warns War Could Spill Into Another Country

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio flatly denied on Monday, Oct. 19, that Washington ever paused intelligence sharing with Ukraine.

"There has been no pause," Rubio told reporters in Uzbekistan, where he is meeting officials from the C5+1 grouping: the United States, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. He landed in Samarkand on Sunday night.

That is the opposite of what Ukraine's president said a day earlier.

Two accounts of the same three days

Zelensky told NBC's "Meet the Press" in an interview published Sunday that the flow of intelligence "was blocked for some period of time. And then it was deblocked by the American side." He described a three-day suspension and said, "We are very thankful for this. Now it works."

The intelligence in question helps Ukraine prepare for Russian ballistic missile attacks, giving air defense crews time to respond and civilians time to reach shelter.

Rubio did not engage with the details. He pivoted to what he wants Kyiv to do. "What he (Zelensky) should be focused on and what we want to be focused on is bringing an end to this war," Rubio said. "That's what we want the Russians to be focused on."

The Kyiv Post reported that Ukrainian sources said there was no early warning of the ballistic threat during Russia's overnight attack on Kyiv early Monday. The paper's correspondent in the Solomianskyi district said explosions were audible before the air raid alert sounded, a couple of minutes later.

The strike killed a woman, hit a subway station and damaged a 25-storey residential building, according to Reuters. The Kyiv Post identified the woman as 21 years old.

Whether the late warning has anything to do with U.S. intelligence is not established. Rubio says there was no pause. Ukraine says there was. Both statements are on the record.

Rubio on escalation

Rubio also used the Samarkand stop to warn about where the war could go.

"We see nothing good coming from this war," he said. "We see a lot of downside to it, including the very real risk of escalation and spread of this thing into another country because of a failed sabotage attack, because of drones that are hit with electronic warfare and they wander into a neighboring country."

He did not name a country. The pointed example was accident, not intent: a drone knocked off course or a botched sabotage operation.

The summit question

Asked about a possible meeting of President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping on ending the war, Rubio neither confirmed nor ruled it out.

"There's been talks of a meeting. I don't know whether it's been finalized, but the president has been clear. He'd like the war in Ukraine and Russia to end."

The Moscow Times, citing earlier reports, said the floated summit would exclude Ukraine. Rubio did not address that point in the remarks quoted.

A summit with Xi at the table would put Beijing, the country the U.S. government itself treats as its chief strategic rival, in the room for the settlement of a European war. Rubio gave no detail on what role China would play.

Trump versus Zelensky

Rubio's comments follow a sharp weekend from the president. On Truth Social on Sunday, Trump said he was making "great progress" toward peace but wrote that Zelensky "doesn't care, and frankly, with all of the money that Europe is famously giving him... he doesn't want to end this war, and probably never did."

Trump added: "He could have made a better deal two years ago than he can now. His country is in shambles."

He also accused Ukraine of hurting fuel markets. "Zelensky is using Diesel Refineries in Russia as a target, knowing that these attacks are seriously hurting the world diesel markets, including those in the United States," he wrote.

Trump says he has struck a deal with Russia to secure fuel exports in exchange for easing sanctions. He has waived some sanctions on Moscow and said the relief should keep the Kremlin at the negotiating table. Zelensky has criticized those moves.

Trump has not brokered an end to the war despite intense diplomacy since returning to office in January 2025. He has also suggested Zelensky should step down.

Starshield and Starlink

A separate dispute is running alongside the intelligence one. Since 2024, the Pentagon has shared a military version of Starlink, called Starshield, with Ukraine, at a cost NPR describes as billions of dollars.

Zelensky said on NBC that he believes the U.S. government is behind his military's loss of normal access, claiming SpaceX imposed restrictions after a "message from [the] American government." He said the system has not been fully restored, despite what U.S. officials have said publicly.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said on X that the U.S. government is responsible for the system and that "any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS."

Zelensky said the restrictions hit Ukraine's ability to intercept Russian aircraft and conduct strikes on occupied territory. He added that soldiers who have spent weeks on the front line depend on Starlink-guided drones to deliver food and water.

Euronews reports that Ukraine is now discussing European alternatives to U.S.-made air defense systems and Starlink.

What is unresolved

Rubio's own words leave the central questions open. He does not know whether the three-way summit is finalized. He has not explained why Ukraine reports degraded satellite access. And his denial of any intelligence pause stands against Zelensky's on-the-record account of three days.