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President Donald Trump is sitting down on Tuesday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at what looks like the peak of their relationship — though it may not last.
Trump recently announced plans to give Ukraine a license to produce its own Patriot missiles, a potentially critical boost for the country in its four-year war with Russia. Just as importantly, Trump also praised Zelenskyy after their meeting at the NATO summit. And Ukraine is increasingly striking back at Russia.
It’s a sharp turnabout from the tense Oval Office spat earlier in Trump’s second term, which ended with Zelenskyy’s early departure. The Trump-Zelenskyy thaw is happening amid a broader shift in the Republican Party toward Ukraine, underscored by right-wing provocateur Laura Loomer’s high-profile conversion from Russia sympathizer to Ukraine defender.
“I don’t want to overstate this, but for the first time since 2022, [Vladimir] Putin is on his back foot,” said Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., of the Russian leader. Kennedy added that Trump “sees what we all see, and that now it’s time to put some pressure on Putin — and the Ukrainians have Putin down.”
Yet it’s not clear whether Trump’s warmer posture towards Zelenskyy is a concrete realignment or a strategic effort to force Putin to the negotiating table. Some close to the US president say the latter is closer to reality, and that Trump’s welcoming of the Ukrainian leader today is designed to wind down a brutal war that he promised to end — while another war, in Iran, shows little signs of abating.
Even the Russia sanctions bill contains evidence for both arguments: Trump is growing impatient with Putin, but has stopped short of full public support for the measure. At the same time, his White House’s positive signals about the legislation point to a hardening stance toward Putin.
Inside the administration, “any lingering sentiment about trusting Putin has long since gone,” one person close to Trump told Semafor. “What we’re waiting for here is a more consistent Putin. And the way to get that is for Putin to understand that he’s not the only girl at the party.”
For some GOP senators, the relationship feels genuinely different. Asked if Trump is more sympathetic to Zelenskyy and less so to Putin, Kennedy replied: “Yes is the answer.”
Loomer’s about-face on Ukraine, the product of concerted advocacy by conservative allies of Kyiv, is sparking attention and serving as a challenge to the continued pro-Russia bent of right-wing pundits like Tucker Carlson. The Trump ally posted a series of apologies about her past comments after visiting Ukraine; Loomer said at one point that she had been “bamboozled by Russian propaganda.”
But people close to Trump are skeptical that Loomer — no matter how close she is to the US president’s ear — is playing much of a role in his thinking about Ukraine and Russia.
Ultimately, Trump aides said, the president is focused on steering Putin and Zelenskyy toward a deal.
“The president has a humanitarian heart and wants this war settled so the senseless killing ends,” said a White House official, describing Trump as playing “a constructive role in speaking to both sides.”
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The Senate will take its first test vote on the sanctions bill on Tuesday evening as Zelenskyy visits with Trump (a visit booked at the Ukrainian president’s request, another White House official noted). Zelenskyy will also meet with senators, including Kennedy, later Tuesday after a memorial ceremony for the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.
Graham was a huge proponent of the sanctions bill, working on it for more than a year as he tried to win Trump’s support.
Republicans said they see the sanctions bill and Russia’s weakened position on the battlefield as potentially giving Trump an opening to end the war.
“Clearly, the Ukrainians are winning the summer war. I know as many of us have concerns about what happens in the winter, which is probably more to the advantage of the Russians. I think the president wants to see the war in Ukraine end,” said Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont.
Democrats have spent more than a decade seeking to undercut Trump by highlighting his warmth toward Putin. But even they agree that Trump’s public positioning is at odds with Russia at a critical moment in its war against Ukraine.
“His public statements would indicate that. And he signed the G7 communiqué, and he signed the communiqué at the NATO summit, and he said that Ukraine should be able to make Patriot missiles and interceptors,” said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., the ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “All of that’s positive.”
Room for Disagreement
Beyond the delays in the Russia sanctions bill there’s another signal that Trump seems reluctant to go all-in for Zelenskyy: the slow pace of aid.
Trump on Monday lamented that “so much” of the US stockpile was given to Ukraine under Joe Biden’s administration.
“We have a lot of ammunition — different types,” Trump insisted when asked about US stockpiles as the conflict with Iran continues. “Biden gave a lot to Ukraine. … I’d like to have more, to be honest, but so much was given to Ukraine by Biden. When I left, the cupboards were full.”
Shelby and Burgess’ View
Trump is clearly looking for a foreign policy win as his war with Iran drags on. The Russia-Ukraine war might finally be in a place where he can get that victory, with the added benefit of ending what he’s called a war that “never would have happened” had he, not Biden, been in office.
Now Russia appears weakened by the years-long conflict, giving Trump a possible avenue to force Putin to the negotiating table — with a cold-shoulder move.
That pursuit of a deal to tout before the midterms is the real motivation behind Trump’s friendlier positioning toward Ukraine, as well as his backing of new Russia sanctions.
Notable
- Reuters reported on Monday night that $400 million in authorized US assistance to Ukraine won’t be fully exhausted until 2029.