A senior defence official stated that the Pentagon has denied media reports claiming Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered a stop to offensive cyber operations against Russia.

The official, speaking anonymously, clarified that Hegseth has not cancelled or delayed any cyber operations targeting harmful Russian activities. There has been no order to pause these operations. The denial came after The Record, a cybersecurity publication, reported that Hegseth had instructed the US Cyber Command to stop all planning against Russia, including any offensive cyber actions. This report was later confirmed by the Washington Post and New York Times, citing unnamed officials.

Democrats, notably Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, expressed their outrage over the reported suspension, accusing the Trump administration of allowing Russia to "continue to launch cyber operations and ransomware attacks against critical American infrastructure." Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and other Democrats expressed their outrage over the reported stop, accusing the Trump administration of handing Russia "a free pass as Russia continues to launch cyber operations and ransomware attacks against critical American infrastructure." 

Reports stated that the halt happened before Trump and Zelenskyy had a disagreement in the Oval Office on Friday. It was seen as a move to push Russia toward peace talks to end the Ukraine conflict. When asked about these reports, the Pentagon did not comment but emphasised that Hegseth's top priority is the safety of U.S. troops. According to its website, the US Cyber Command is in charge of 135 "cyber mission force" teams, or "its action arm." Cyber Combat Mission Teams are the units that are engaged in offensive activities.

Trump has directed a halt to all military aid to Ukraine until he sees that the country's leaders are genuinely committed to peace, according to a senior official from the Defense Department who spoke on condition of anonymity. The official mentioned that all U.S. military equipment not yet in Ukraine, including weapons on aircraft, ships, or in transit areas in Poland, will be paused.