Former National Security Council Chief of Staff Fred Fleitz said on Newsmax on Saturday that the recent confusion over the pause in U.S. weapons shipments to Ukraine highlights the critical need for an empowered National Security Council to mediate between the Pentagon and State Department.

Fleitz, who served in the first Trump administration and previously as a CIA analyst, made the comments during an appearance on “Saturday Report,” pointing out that an apparent disconnect between the Pentagon, the State Department and the White House revealed systemic weaknesses in national security coordination.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth canceled 11 planes delivering weapons to Ukraine, including artillery and shells. Trump was unaware of Hegseth’s involvement, with TRANSCOM records noting only a verbal order from “SECDEF” halting aid flights until Feb. 5, a decision made without input from either the State Department or the White House.

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