Zelenskyy achieves 'impossible' in Washington, securing Trump's backing on Patriot missiles

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky achieved what seemed impossible a year ago in Washington: convincing the White House that Ukraine can win the war, Politico writes. Zelensky met with Donald Trump on July 28 as part of a diplomatic effort to end Russia's war against Ukraine.

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It was a good meeting. The president and I discussed licenses for Patriot interceptor missile production and several other ideas that could help. We also talked about diplomacy, it is important that the diplomatic process be relaunched.

The closed-door meeting lasted about an hour. "It was a good meeting," Zelensky said afterward. "The president and I discussed licenses for Patriot interceptor missile production and several other ideas that could help. We also talked about diplomacy – it is important that the diplomatic process be relaunched."

According to advisors to the Ukrainian president, Trump has become more amenable to Ukraine recently, making this meeting an important opportunity for Kyiv. Discussions reportedly focused on an air truce proposal to be presented to Russia later, as well as Kyiv's request for additional Patriot interceptor missiles. The U.S. system remains the only one capable of intercepting Russian ballistic missiles, and Ukraine faces a critical shortage of ammunition.

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agreed to grant us the licenses

In a later interview with Fox News, Zelensky stated that Trump "agreed to grant us the licenses" for Patriots. The head of the Presidential Office, Kyrylo Budanov, confirmed that Kyiv and Washington agreed to "intensify the negotiation process at all levels." The Ukrainian president also met with representatives from American defense company Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of Patriot missiles and other essential systems like ATACMS, HIMARS, and F-16 fighter jets. Zelensky indicated that discussions focused on "concrete solutions" to address Ukraine's air defense gap.

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intensify the negotiation process at all levels

Later that day, Zelensky and Trump attended the funeral of Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch supporter of both Trump and Ukraine, who died suddenly on July 11 shortly after a visit to Kyiv. During his visit, Graham had stated he had finally secured Trump's support for his long-pending bill on sanctions against Russia. Just before the White House meeting, U.S. senators announced a bipartisan agreement on this legislation, aimed at holding major buyers of Russian oil and gas accountable for financing Moscow's war. The updated version of the bill softens the initially proposed measures and additionally includes sanctions against Iran. That evening, after the funeral ceremony, a procedural vote was held for the Lindsey O. Graham Law of 2024 on sanctions against Russia and Iran.

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concrete solutions