US President Donald Trump downplayed the possibility of long-range missile transfers to Ukraine in his meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday.
“We’re going to be talking about Tomahawks, and would much rather have them not need Tomahawks,” Trump said before the two sides met for a bilateral lunch. “Hopefully we’ll be able to get the war over with without thinking about Tomahawks.”
Later, Trump appeared to depart the White House without taking questions.
Washington has recently appeared to grow more amenable to resuming military backing for Kyiv’s push to repel Russia’s invasion. Those hopes have likely been undermined, however, by Trump’s announcement that he will hold talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
“On multiple occasions this year,” The New York Times wrote, “Mr. Trump has come right to the edge of imposing penalties on Russia or giving powerful new military aid to Ukraine, only to speak with Mr. Putin and raise hopes for a diplomatic solution — so far with little to show for it.”
“Putin is likely hoping for a repeat of Anchorage in Budapest,” an Atlantic Council analyst told The Wall Street Journal.