Trump signals caution on supplying Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine

• Trump says giving Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine may be premature.
• Zelenskyy visits White House to request long-range US missiles.
• Trump warns supplying missiles could escalate the war.
• Zelenskyy offers to exchange thousands of Ukrainian drones for Tomahawks.

US President Donald Trump on Friday indicated that providing Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles might be premature, suggesting the conflict with Russia could potentially be resolved without them.

“Hopefully we'll be able to get the war over with without thinking about Tomahawks,” Trump told reporters, adding that supplying the missiles despite Russian warnings “could mean big escalation. It could mean a lot of bad things can happen.” He also expressed optimism that Russian President Vladimir Putin “wants to end the war.”

Zelenskyy, however, offered to exchange “thousands” of Ukrainian drones for the Tomahawk missiles, emphasizing Kyiv’s extensive use of drones since Russia’s invasion in February 2022. “The United States has Tomahawks and other missiles, very strong missiles, but they can have our 1,000s of drones,” he said.

The meeting comes a day after Trump and Putin agreed on a call to hold a new summit in Budapest. Kremlin officials said “many questions” still need resolution before the meeting, including the composition of each negotiating team. Hungary has pledged to ensure Putin can attend the talks despite an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for alleged war crimes.

Trump also stressed that the US must be careful not to “deplete” its stock of Tomahawks, which have a range of over 1,600 kilometers. Diplomatic talks on ending Russia’s invasion have stalled since a summit in Alaska in August that failed to produce a breakthrough.

Since the start of his second term, Trump’s position on the Ukraine conflict has shifted repeatedly. Initially critical of Zelenskyy, he has since maintained a channel of dialogue with Putin, while also expressing frustration with the Russian leader.

Russia continues to occupy about a fifth of Ukrainian territory, much of it heavily damaged. On Friday, the Russian defense ministry announced it had captured three villages in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv regions. Kyiv and its European allies maintain that the invasion is illegal and has caused extensive civilian and military casualties.