United States President Donald Trump said on Friday that it would be premature to give Ukraine long-range Tomahawk missiles because it could escalate the situation with Russia. He also hinted that America needed missiles too, as he hoped to resolve the Russian-Ukrainian war without the Tomahawk.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who met Donald Trump at the White House today, demanded weapons that would allow Ukrainian forces to strike deep into Russian territory, targeting key military sites, energy facilities and critical infrastructure.
Zelenskyy said at the start of the White House meeting that he had a “proposal” in which Ukraine could provide the United States with its advanced drones, while Washington would sell Kiev long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles.
When Zelenskiy mentioned that Ukraine needed tomahawks, Trump said: “Tomahawks could mean escalation. Hopefully they won’t need them. Hopefully we’ll be able to get the war over without thinking about tomahawks.”
“I also have a responsibility to make sure we are fully stocked as a country because you never know what will happen in war and peace. We would much rather they didn’t need tomahawks. To be honest, we would much rather the war ended.”
He continued: “We need tomahawks and we need a lot of other things that we’ve been sending to Ukraine for the last four years. One of the reasons we want to end this war is exactly that — it’s not easy for us to provide. You’re talking about a huge amount of very powerful weapons,” suggesting that the US would not provide Ukraine with tomahawks.
Trump added that he was confident he would persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the invasion, which he launched in 2022, after a phone call with the Kremlin chief a day earlier.
The presidents of the US and Russia agreed on Thursday, October 16, to hold a new summit in the Hungarian capital of Budapest, which would be their first since a meeting in Alaska in August that failed to reach a peace deal.
“I think President Putin wants to end the war,” Trump said.
However, Zelensky objected, saying Putin was “not ready” for peace.
On the eve of Zelensky’s visit to Washington, Vladimir Putin warned Trump against the delivery of Tomahawk missiles, saying it would significantly strain their relationship.
Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov quoted Vladimir Putin as saying: “The delivery of tomahawks will not change the situation on the battlefield, but will damage US-Russian relations and the peace process.
