Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday, a visit that takes on critical significance as President Trump debates supplying Kyiv with potent long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles.
The upcoming meeting was confirmed by an administration official and a Ukrainian embassy spokesperson, with Ukraine’s ambassador to the U.S., Olga Stefanishyna, confirming Trump’s invitation. Ukrainian Embassy spokesperson Halyna Yusypiuk said the invitation came following a weekend of calls between the two leaders.
The timing is paramount, coming as President Trump suggests he is seriously considering providing Ukraine with the advanced weaponry. The Tomahawk missiles, which have a range of over 1,500 miles, would mark a major escalation in U.S. military support, giving Ukraine the capacity to strike deep inside Russian territory.
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Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Monday, President Trump discussed the possibility of the transfer. While noting the severity of the decision, he suggested it could be a leverage point to end the conflict.
“We may not, but we may do it,” Trump said. The Tomahawks would be “a new step of aggression” in the war, he acknowledged, but added, “I think it’s appropriate to bring up — yeah, I want to. I want to see the war settled.”
The potential delivery has drawn sharp warnings from Moscow. Russian President Vladimir Putin cautioned earlier this month that providing the missiles would mark a “qualitatively new stage of escalation, including in relations between Russia and the U.S.” Dmitry Medvedev, a top Russian official and former president, also cautioned that the move “could end badly for everyone, and first and foremost, for Trump himself.”
Zelenskyy’s Promise: ‘Military Only’ Use
The White House visit follows President Zelenskyy’s renewed pleas for the long-range firepower, which he says is essential to pressure Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin. Appearing on Fox News‘ “The Sunday Briefing,” the Ukrainian leader reiterated his commitment that the Tomahawks would only be used against military targets in Russia.
“It’s only military goals,” Zelenskyy emphasized. “Even with all this pain of losses… we never attack their civilians. This is the big difference between Ukraine and Russia.”
Zelenskyy framed his request through the lens of a recent breakthrough brokered by President Trump. The Ukrainian President said the peace agreement between Israel and Hamas, which secured the release of the remaining living hostages, gave his country “hope” that ending Russia’s war is possible.
“He said really that [the] Ukraine [war] is more difficult [to end], that it’s a bigger war,” Zelenskyy recounted. “Putin really doesn’t want [to end the war] and he doesn’t feel full pressure on him.”
The Ukrainian delegation traveling to Washington is a high-level one, including Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko and top national security official Rustem Umerov, according to a post on X from Andriy Yermak, the head of Zelenskyy’s office. The delegation’s goals are “to strengthen Ukraine’s defense, secure our energy resilience, and intensify sanctions pressure on the aggressor,” Yermak said.
The planned meeting on Friday will be the first between the two leaders since mid-August, when Zelenskyy visited the White House with European leaders providing “diplomatic backup” after an initially tense meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy in February. The current visit, following Trump’s public shift in tone regarding the long-range weapons, suggests a significant pivot in the U.S. approach to the war.
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