Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is at the White House today seeking an increase in military aid, with the potential transfer of Tomahawk cruise missiles expected to be the central focus of his meeting with President Trump.
The meeting follows a lengthy phone call yesterday between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, during which the leaders arranged a future summit in Budapest. President Trump indicated he briefly raised the subject of the Tomahawks with Putin, which are long-range missiles sought by Ukraine to strike deep within Russian territory.
Tomahawks as Leverage
President Trump has previously described sending the missiles as a “new step of aggression” that he might pursue to pressure Russia into a peace settlement. “I might say ‘Look: if this war is not going to get settled, I’m going to send the Tomahawks,'” the President said earlier this week.
However, the President appeared to temper expectations on Thursday, expressing concern over the domestic stockpile. “I will say to you, we need Tomahawks for the United States of America too,” he stated. “We have a lot of them, but we need them. I mean we can’t deplete our country.”
Russian Strikes Overshadow Diplomacy
The high-stakes diplomatic talks are proceeding even as Russia shows no sign of de-escalation. Ukrainian Ambassador to the U.S. Olga Stefanishyna noted that a “massive overnight strike” by Russia, launched hours before the Trump-Putin call, was a “direct blow to ongoing peace efforts.”
President Trump, who recently expressed frustration with Putin over the failure to end the war, simply said “great progress was made” in the Thursday call, without providing details.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to lead preliminary discussions next week with Russian advisors in an undisclosed location ahead of the anticipated Trump-Putin meeting.
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