President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are set to meet at the White House on Friday to discuss big-ticket defensive items and strategies to better counter Russia’s war.
The meeting, announced earlier this week, comes just one day after Trump held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Zelenskyy has made clear his chief aim is to secure better defenses for Ukraine amid Russia’s constant aerial bombardments of civilian targets like cities, energy infrastructure and hospitals, and his big-ticket item is the American Tomahawk missile.
Earlier this week, President Donald Trump is considering selling long-range, precision-guided Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine to help the country defend itself more effectively against Russia’s ongoing invasion.
Trump emphasized his preference for a strategic, diplomatic approach. “We’ll see,” he said. “I might have to speak to Russia, to be honest with you. Do they want Tomahawks going in their direction? I don’t think so.”
If approved, the sale would represent a major upgrade to Ukraine’s capabilities. Tomahawk cruise missiles—made by Raytheon, part of RTX Corporation—can strike targets nearly 1,000 miles away with high precision. Used in conflicts from the Gulf War to recent operations in Yemen and Iran, the missiles can be reprogrammed mid-flight and launched from ships, submarines, or ground-based platforms.
Following his call with Putin on Thursday, Trump said “great progress” was made, but he did not provide any specifics on how progress was achieved, though the pair agreed to once again meet in person, this time in Hungary.
Though Trump said the pair discussed U.S.-Russia trade, he did not say whether U.S. aid to Ukraine was discussed, which appeared to be the impetus for the call earlier this week when he told reporters he “might have to speak” with Putin regarding whether he wanted U.S. Tomahawks near his borders, in what appeared to be an implied threat.
But neither Tomahawks nor defensive aid were mentioned in the president’s account of the talks.
Though, according to Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov, the issue was discussed and opposed by Putin.
“Vladimir Putin reiterated his thesis that Tomahawks won’t change the situation on the battlefield, but they will cause significant damage to relations between our countries. Not to mention the prospects for a peaceful settlement,” he told reporters following the call, according to Reuters.
This whole confilct can be resolved easily. Both Ukraine and Russia return to and respect each others borders pre invasion by Russia. Ukrine and Russia sit down and happer this out and don’t mess with each other. Simply put Putin starts needing to act like the leader of Russia an not a KGB agent trying to reestablish the USSR. It just is not going to happen. If it takes longer distance weapons stationed in Ukraine which can hit Russian targest like Russia is using to hit Ukrainian targets, so be it. Massive ego’s have beat their chests long enough and way too many on both sides have died becasue of it.
Perhaps we need to put both Z&P in a room and lock them in together and either they work it out or kill each other and not thousands of others over their squabble.