U.S. President Donald Trump told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a tense meeting Friday that he has no plans to supply Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles, at least not yet, two sources briefed on the discussion after the news conference told Axios.
Volodymyr Zelensky at a working lunch at the White House PHOTO EPA-EFE
Zelenskiy had hoped to leave Washington with commitments to supply Ukraine with new weapons, but he found Trump in a completely different mood a day after his long talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump has been quite clear: His priority right now is diplomacy, and the transfer of Tomahawk missiles would not be beneficial to that end, the sources revealed.
According to one of the sources, the meeting “wasn't easy”, while the second said it “went badly”.
“No one yelled, but Trump was tough,” according to the first source.
“Trump made several strong statements during the meeting and at some points he got a little emotional,” the second source said.
A long discussion
The meeting ended abruptly after 2.5 hours. “I think we're done. Let's see what happens next week,” Trump said, referring to planned talks between the US and Russia. The US president plans to meet Putin in Budapest within two weeks.
At the same time, Trump informed Zelenski about the conversation he had with Putin on Thursday (at the initiative of Moscow).
He pointed out that the current US proposal for a diplomatic solution to the conflict is for the war to end on the current front lines.
Trump hinted at this position in a post on Truth Social after the meeting ended. Describing the meeting as “interesting” and “cordial”, he wrote that he urged both sides that it was time to “stop where they are”, adding: “Let us both claim victory, let History decide!”
Trump later left for Mar-a-Lago without answering questions from reporters. The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Zelenski, on the other hand, had a telephone conference with European leaders immediately after the meeting with Trump. Several of them appeared puzzled by Trump's apparent change of heart, said a source who participated in the call.
Shortly thereafter, they began issuing coordinated statements of support for Ukraine, a pretty clear indication that the meeting with Trump was not a success.
In a conference call with reporters, Zelenskiy confirmed that they had discussed the Tomahawk missiles, but said that he and Trump had decided not to discuss the issue publicly, as the US wanted to avoid escalation.
Asked if he felt optimistic about Tomahawk missiles in the future, Zelenskiy said: “I'm realistic.”
In reality, the sources said, Zelenskiy pushed hard on Tomahawk missiles, but Trump balked and showed no flexibility on the matter.
What to expect next
During the call between Zelenskiy and European leaders, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer proposed working with the US to develop a peace plan for Ukraine, modeled after Trump's 20-point plan for Gaza, the source familiar with the call said.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte proposed an urgent talk between European advisers on national security issues at the weekend.
Zelenskiy's priority in Washington was to get commitments from Trump on Tomahawk missiles, but also on a variety of weapons systems that Ukraine wants to acquire, his chief of staff told Axios before the meeting.
Trump made no such pledges during his talk with Zelenskiy on Friday.
