President Trump hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday at the White House, part of a renewed push to end Russia’s over three-years long war in Ukraine.
Trump, feeling victorious after securing a ceasefire in the Middle East, projected optimism about ending the war that he once proclaimed he could resolve in one day.
“I’m the mediator president, and I’m mediating a not easy situation,” Trump said. "It should be easy."
The meeting, held as a working lunch with Trump and Zelensky sitting across from each other, was initially carried out in front of the press without any major explosions between the two sides. This was likely a welcome relief after a February Oval Office meeting, which escalated into a shouting match between Trump, Vice President Vance and Zelensky.
But while Trump previously expressed increasing frustration with Putin and confidence that Ukraine could possibly regain all territory occupied by Russia, he tempered his stance on Friday.
“I think they're both doing a great job,” at negotiating, Trump said. “We have to get it done.”
Here are five takeaways from the meeting:
Trump pours cold water on Ukraine's Tomahawks push
Trump appeared to dismiss Ukraine’s push to acquire long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles, saying it is not “easy” for Washington to provide the munitions.
“It’s not easy for us to give … you’re talking about massive numbers of very powerful weapons,” the president told reporters at the White House.
“So, that’s one of the things we’ll be talking about. Hopefully, they won’t need it. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get the war over with, without thinking about Tomahawks,” Trump said.
The potential delivery of Tomahawk missiles has become a point of discussion after Trump signaled his openness to sending the weapons to Ukraine last weekend.
Zelensky said on Friday that Kyiv would not only rely on the missiles in its war against Russia, indicating that Ukraine could dispatch “thousands” of its drones to the U.S. in a swap for U.S.-made long-range missiles, which are typically launched from submarines and warships.
“But [the] U.S. is a very strong production and the U.S. has Tomahawks and other missiles, very strong missiles, but they can have our thousands of drones,” Zelensky added. “That’s why, where we can work together, where we can strengthen American production.”
Military experts told The Hill this week that the missiles, which can fly at high subsonic speeds and at low heights to evade radars, would equip Ukraine with the increased range and capability to hit Russian military targets and continue its strikes on the Kremlin’s energy facilities.
Trump said on Friday that the U.S. is interested in Kyiv’s drones and complimented Ukraine on its production of unmanned aircraft.
“We have a lot of drones right now. We build our own drones, but we also buy drones from others, and they make a very good drone,” the president said.
Trump, Zelensky offer conflicting views on Putin's desire for peace
Trump offered an optimistic view on ending Russia's war in Ukraine, building on what he views as momentum after negotiating a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas earlier this month.
The president pointed to a phone call he held with Putin on Thursday, where he said the talk yielded progress on Moscow wanting to make a deal.
Zelensky offered a starkly different view on Friday, arriving from Ukraine after Russia launched one of its largest missile strikes against the country and pointing to Putin refusing to cease fire despite Trump’s demands.
“I think that, yes, we understand that Putin is not ready, I think not ready. But I'm confident that with your help, we can stop this war, and we really need it,” Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian leader said he believes the Middle East ceasefire does provide a possible opportunity to make progress on ending Russia’s war, adding that he is ready to meet Putin — an offer the Kremlin has refused.
Zelensky said security guarantees for Ukraine are key to reach an enduring peace.
“The most important thing for people in Ukraine, which are under each day's attack, to have really strong security guarantees,” he said.
Zelensky gets a compliment on his wardrobe
The Ukrainian president received a compliment from Trump during their White House meeting after sporting a dark suit jacket over one of his trademark dark shirts.
“And I think he looks beautiful in this jacket. It’s beautiful. I hope people notice. It’s very stylish,” the president said of Zelensky’s outfit.
Zelensky faced criticism from some on the right after not wearing a jacket during his February visit to the White House, which devolved into a shouting match.
Zelensky wore a coat and a matching shirt, but not a tie, during his meeting with Trump at the White House in August.
“President Zelensky, you look fabulous in that suit,” Brian Glenn, the chief White House reporter for the conservative Real America’s Voice outlet, said at the time.
“I said the same thing,” Trump said in August. “And he’s the one that attacked you last time.”
Trump rips Spain over defense spending
Trump ripped into Spain on Friday for not committing to bolster its defense spending to 5 percent of its gross domestic product, which allies agreed to at a NATO summit in June.
“Spain has not been loyal to NATO. Spain has been…they're the only one —everyone went up to, as you know. I mean, you were 2 percent, and they all went up to 5 percent, but Spain disagreed with that,” the president said. “I think Spain should be reprimanded for that.”
“I think it's very bad that they did that, but that's up to them,” Trump added. “That's up to NATO and Spain.”
Spain secured an exemption from NATO’s increased defense spending goal, pointing to financial concerns. Earlier this week, Trump threatened to slap tariffs on Spain over the lower defense spending.
Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles said last week that Madrid is “not worried” about the potential removal from the NATO alliance.
“I believe that President Trump must know that Spain is one of the committed and loyal (NATO) allies,” Robles said.
Trump drops f-bomb on Maduro question
The most explosive moment of the lunch meeting ended up having nothing to do with Ukraine, but instead Trump’s escalating confrontation with Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro.
“He doesn't want to f--- around with the U.S.," Trump said, abruptly ending the press portion of his meeting with Zelensky.
Trump's remarks provided a rare insight into the president losing his cool. The last time he lost his temper publicly was during the infamous February Oval Office spat with Zelensky, which l led to a brief rupture in U.S. and Ukrainian relations.
Although Zelensky escaped Trump’s ire this time, the president’s frustration with Maduro signals that U.S. military operations in the Caribbean Sea may escalate.
The U.S. carried out its sixth attack on what it describes as drug trafficking vessels off the coast of Venezuela. The strike, which Trump said targeted a drug-carrying submarine, is reported to have survivors.
The first five boat strikes have killed at least 27 people, according to the Trump administration.
“Just so you understand, this was not an innocent group of people,” Trump said. “I don't know too many people that have submarines.”
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