Zelensky asserts Putin fears Ukraine acquiring Tomahawk missiles.
In an interview aired yesterday (Sunday local time), Volodymyr Zelensky said he understood that the Tomahawk missiles were a “very sensitive” issue for the Russians.
The Ukrainian president claimed: “They are afraid that the United States could provide [weapons] to Ukraine. I think Putin is afraid that the United States will provide us with Tomahawk missiles.”
US President Donald Trump said during a meeting with Zelensky at the White House on Friday that it would not be “easy” for the United States to provide Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine.
“It is not easy for us to provide them. We are talking about a large number of very powerful weapons,” Trump said.
“So, that is one of the issues that we will discuss; I hope they [the Ukrainians] will not need them [the missiles] and we can end the war without thinking about the Tomahawks.”
The possible deployment of Tomahawk missiles has become a significant topic of discussion in recent days after Trump floated the idea.
When US host Chris Volker asked Zelensky if he was disappointed that Trump’s answer to the Tomahawk missiles was not “yes,” he replied: “Of course I want it [Tomahawks] and of course we [the Ukrainian people] want it. We certainly know how to use it. I think that could put pressure on Russia and force Putin to negotiate. It’s good that President Trump didn’t say “no,” but he didn’t say “yes” today. But I hope that this conversation continues.”
The war between Moscow and Kiev continues, while the British newspaper Financial Times recently reported, citing informed sources, that the US President told his Ukrainian counterpart to accept Russia’s conditions for ending the war, because Putin has threatened to destroy Ukraine if Kiev does not accept these conditions.
According to the report, Trump issued this warning during his meeting with Zelensky at the White House on Friday. During the meeting, the US President urged Zelensky to hand over the entire Donbas region in eastern Ukraine to Russia. He also repeatedly mentioned points from his recent phone call with Putin.