US President Donald Trump on Friday hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, just a day after speaking with Russian President Vladimir Putin in what he described as a "productive call."
“It’s an honor to be with a very strong leader, a man who has been through a lot, and a man who I’ve gotten to know very well, and we’ve gotten along really very well,” the 47th POTUS said.
“We had a big call yesterday, as you know, with President Putin, and we’ll be talking about it,” he added.
Lot of bad blood between Putin-Zelenskyy: Putin
Trump described there being a lot of "bad blood" between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“These two leaders do not like each other, and we want to make it comfortable for everyone. So, one way or another, we’ll be involved in talks, but it might need to be in separate settings,” he said.
He also remarked, “Well, let’s see what happens. I think President Putin wants to end the war, or I wouldn’t be talking like this.”
On Tomahawk missiles
Speaking on whether the US will supply Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine Trump expressed reluctance saying, "One of the reasons we want to get this war over is…that it’s not easy for us to give you…massive numbers of very powerful weapons… Hopefully they won’t need it. Hopefully we’ll be able to get the war over with without thinking about tomahawks."
"We’re going to be talking about tomahawks and would much rather have them not need tomahawks. [We] would much rather have the war be over, to be honest. Because, you know, we’re in it to get the war over… We’re selling a lot of different types of weapons, as you know, to the European Union. We’re not in it for that. We’re in it to get it over," he added.
Trump also complimented Zelenskyy's "very stylish jacket" before they started taking questions, a callback to their earlier meeting in February when he and Vice-President JD Vance berated the Ukrainian president in the Oval Office on live television.
The meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy is their third in the Oval Office and the sixth overall this year.
The two leaders addressed the media before sitting down for a bilateral lunch.
In the meeting, Zelenskyy is expected to press Trump for long-range Tomahawk missiles, which Ukraine has argued are essential to push back Russian forces. These missiles, with a range of about 1,600 kilometres, would allow Ukraine to strike deeper into Russian territory, a crucial step in the ongoing war.
However, despite prior signs of openness to the idea, Trump appeared to backtrack after a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who warned that supplying such weapons could escalate the conflict and hinder peace negotiations.
Trump expressed concerns about depleting US missile stocks, signalling that he is not yet ready to approve the sale. This shift in stance comes after a call between the two leaders, during which Trump and Putin also discussed a potential summit in Budapest. This summit would be their first since their August meeting in Alaska, which failed to yield significant progress in peace talks.
Zelenskyy’s visit to Washington is not solely focused on military aid. He also seeks to expand Ukraine’s energy partnerships, including a proposal to store US liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Ukraine's facilities, a move aimed at enhancing Ukraine's energy security and increasing the presence of US businesses in the region.