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WASHINGTON — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hailed a “good meeting” with US counterpart Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday, saying they discussed licenses to produce Patriot air-defense interceptors and ways to revive negotiations with Russia.
Zelenskyy spent just over an hour with Trump, in talks that came as Kyiv and Moscow intensified long-range strikes and US-led diplomatic efforts to end the war stalled.
“Thank you for everything we do together to protect the lives of Ukrainians and advance peace,” Zelenskyy said afterward in a statement on X.
“The President and I discussed licenses for Patriot interceptor production and several other ideas that could help,” he added. “We also spoke about diplomacy — it’s important that the diplomatic process be reinvigorated.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt described the meeting as “positive and productive.”
Relations between Zelenskyy and Trump have warmed since the start of the US president’s second term, with Trump suggesting earlier this month that Ukrainian strikes inside Russia could help end the war.
Ahead of the meeting, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP that Kyiv’s priorities were fresh supplies of anti-ballistic missiles and ways to revive diplomacy, more than four years after Russia’s full-scale invasion.
“It is crucial that Washington approve the purchase of a package of Patriot missiles. That is super important,” the Ukrainian official said.
Zelenskyy was also due to attend a memorial ceremony for Republican senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Ukraine supporter who died unexpectedly this month at age 71.
‘Amazing job’
Since returning to power last year, Trump has ended direct deliveries of US arms to Kyiv, instead allowing European countries to buy weapons for Ukraine.
Washington, nevertheless, remains a major ally, supplying intelligence and access to the Starlink satellite system used for battleground communications.
Relations between the two leaders have recovered since their extraordinary Oval Office confrontation in February 2025, when Trump accused Zelenskyy of ingratitude and “gambling with World War III.”
At their latest meeting in Turkey this month, Trump praised Zelenskyy for doing “an amazing job” and offered Kyiv licenses to manufacture Patriot missiles.
Sanctions push
After the White House meeting and Graham memorial, Zelenskyy addressed senators before an initial procedural vote on a bipartisan Russia sanctions bill.
Graham had spent more than a year championing the measure and reached an agreement with the White House on revisions shortly before his death.
Some Democrats voiced unease about provisions that would expand Trump’s power to impose tariffs on countries buying Russian energy.
A bipartisan vote advanced the bill toward final passage, increasing pressure on the House of Representatives, where the legislation faces deeper divisions.
Relations between Moscow and Washington have, meanwhile, cooled since Trump met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska last August.
Ukraine has recently stepped up strikes on Russian oil depots, refineries and shipping, contributing to fuel shortages.
Hours before Zelenskyy’s meeting with Trump, Kyiv launched hundreds of drones at Russia.
Moscow, meanwhile, fired more than 100 drones at Ukraine overnight and has continued attacking the port of Odesa and ships carrying Ukrainian agricultural exports.
Source: Manilatimes
