Zelenskiy said on Thursday that “the language of force and justice” should work against Russia and claimed the Kremlin “hurried to resume dialogue as soon as it heard about Tomahawks.”
He said the cruise missiles’ possible sale will be discussed with Trump and that he will also meet U.S. defense companies about additional air-defense supplies and energy firms to bolster Ukraine’s resilience amid Russian strikes on its power system. Zelenskiy will stay at Blair House, where the Ukrainian flag has been raised.
Trump said the United States needs Tomahawks for itself and cannot deplete its stocks, suggesting he may not sell them to Ukraine.
He contrasted Thursday’s remarks with his earlier statement that the U.S. has “a lot” of Tomahawks, adding, “We have a lot of them, but we need them […] we can’t deplete for our country.”
He said he asked Vladimir Putin, sarcastically, whether it would bother him if the U.S. handed “a few thousand” Tomahawks to Russia’s opponents, and that he would brief Zelenskiy on his Thursday call with the Russian leader.
Trump also said “this may not be the right time” to impose sanctions on Russia, even as Senate Republican leader John Thune signaled readiness to move a new sanctions bill.
Trump said he plans to meet Putin in Budapest, likely within two weeks, with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban hosting. He added that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will soon set the time and place for their own meeting.
Zelenskiy’s White House visit, his third during Trump’s presidency, follows two weekend phone calls between the leaders that included discussion of potential Tomahawk sales.
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Source: PAP, Associated Press