General
Live. Zelenskyy expected to make long-range missile case in White House talks with Trump
Zelenskyy had been seeking the weapons that would allow Ukrainian forces to strike deep into Russian territory and target key military sites, energy facilities and critical infrastructure.
US President Donald Trump hosts Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for talks at the White House on Friday, with the US leader signalling he may not be ready to sell Kyiv a long-range missile system that the Ukrainians say they desperately need.
Zelenskyy’s one-on-one with the US president comes a day after Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a lengthy phone call to discuss the conflict, culminating in the announcement that they would meet in Hungary.
In recent days, Trump has shown openness to selling Ukraine Tomahawk cruise missiles, even as Putin warned that such a move would further strain the US-Russian relationship.
But following Thursday’s call with Putin, Trump appeared to downplay the prospects of Ukraine getting the missiles, which have a range of about 1,600 kilometres.
“We need Tomahawks for the United States of America too,” Trump said. “We have a lot of them, but we need them. I mean we can’t deplete our country.”
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Expected schedule for the day
Here’s a look at how Friday’s meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy is expected to play out.
1900CET – Trump will greet Zelenskyy at the White House
1915CET – Bilateral meeting in the Oval Office
2100CET – Trump departs the White House en route to Palm Beach
2100CET – Zelenskyy expected to hold solo press conference
There seems to be conflicting accounts over whether or not Trump and Zelenskyy will hold an Oval Office meeting. We’re hearing that no meeting will take place and instead the two leaders will hold only a bilateral lunch.
We also have no information on whether or not Trump and Zelenskyy will hold a joint press conference after their talks.
After the talks, Trump is scheduled to depart the White House and head to his private residence in Palm Beach, Florida.
15:41 GMT+2
EU cautiously welcomes Trump-Putin meeting in Budapest but experts remain sceptical
The European Commission cautiously welcomed the announcement by US President Donald Trump to hold talks with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Budapest in the coming two weeks to advance a possible end to the war in Ukraine.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban was quick to declare the surprise choice of Budapest to hold the meeting as a vindication of his calls on EU leaders to negotiate with Moscow instead of confrontation as the full-scale invasion of Ukraine rages.
You can read more from Sandor Zsiros in the article below.
EU Commission cautiously welcomes Trump-Putin meeting in Budapest
A spokesperson for Ursula von der Leyen said any meeting toward a just peace is welcome but mainstream EU political parties and experts alike are divided on th…
16:19 GMT+2
What does Russia want to end its war?
For Ukraine, what it takes to end the war has always been clear – a full withdrawal of Russian troops and restoration of the country’s territorial integrity by regaining territories Russia claims as its own, including the Crimean Peninsula which was annexed in 2014.
For Russia however, it’s a lot more complicated.
The Kremlin has previously outlined that it wants to retain control of roughly 116,000 square kilometres – just over 19% of Ukraine – as a primary starting point in its long list of demands.
The area incorporates eastern territory seized by Moscow, in Donetsk and Luhansk, part of Ukraine’s Donbas region. It also includes full control of Crimea. Ukrainian officials and their European allies have previously stated that Ukraine’s border cannot change as part of any deal to end the hostilities.
The Russian leader has also listed a permanent ban on Ukraine’s membership to NATO as an important condition to end the war. Moscow has previously asserted that the war started after Ukraine pursued membership of the defence alliance.
Sources close to Putin say that is a red line for the Russian president, who has stated that Western militaries operating on Ukrainian soil is a major security concern that he will never accept.
Russia also wants all Western sanctions imposed on them by the US and EU to be lifted immediately. Sanctions have targeted everything from Russian textiles to its heavier-hitting industries, like energy, causing tremendous strain on the country’s economy.
Trump has indicated that he is prepared to resume trade with Russia, contingent on a deal with Ukraine. The EU however has yet to comment on its plans for dealing with Russia post-war. The bloc is still actively ramping up sanctions against the Kremlin and are exploring the legality of using Russian assets frozen in its territory to extend a line of credit to Ukraine.
Zelenskyy has routinely slammed Russia for its demands, saying they’re “not realistic” and accused Putin of intentionally prolonging the war.
The Ukrainian leader stressed that his country’s full territory is non-negotiable, and maintains that Kyiv is free to make decisions for its security and interests at will, independent of Russia.
14:14 GMT+2
How did previous Trump-Zelenskyy meetings go?
Friday marks the sixth meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy since Trump’s return to the White House in January.
And while the US president has recently demonstrated more support for Ukraine, their previous meetings did not always go as planned.
28 February 2025
The first meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy quickly escalated into a full-blown shouting match, in the Oval Office, on live TV.
The discussion, meant to focus on US support for Ukraine and the minerals agreement, quickly turned sour, as US Vice President JD Vance accused Zelenskyy of being “disrespectful” and “ungrateful”.
Trump, who earlier opted to keep quiet as Vance addressed the Ukrainian leader, later jumped in after Zelenskyy suggested that the US too has a stake in supporting Ukraine, stating that Washington will “feel Putin’s influence” if it doesn’t take decisive action to stop him.
“You’re gambling with the lives of millions of people,” Trump snapped. “You’re gambling with World War Three,” he added.
Zelenskyy left the White House after the heated spat, without a deal, or even a joint press conference with Trump – a White House tradition after meetings between the US president and foreign heads of states.
Trump also ordered a temporary pause on the shipment of US military aid to Ukraine shortly after Zelenskyy’s departure.
26 April 2025
The two leaders made amends during their meeting at the Vatican on the sidelines of Pope Francis’ funeral.
A private 15-minute talk, organised by Vatican officials just before the service commenced in St. Peter’s Basilica, was a significant step towards reconciliation between the two leaders.
25 June 2025
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy met on the sidelines of the NATO summit in The Hague, where Trump formalised his strategy of increasing the military burden on European allies by pushing for a substantial raise in the alliance’s compulsory defence spending commitments.
Trump was able to make all member states, with the exception of Spain, commit to a new target of 5 percent of GDP by 2035, up from previous targets of 2 percent.
The US president also pushed for greater European responsibility towards Ukraine’s military needs.
18 August 2025
Just three days after the Alaskan summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump convened a meeting with Zelenskyy and several European leaders in the White House.
The meeting, largely seen as a diplomatic effort led by Trump, intended to explore the possibility of direct peace talks with Russia. Trump noted previously following his meeting with Putin that he wants to hold a trilateral summit and engage the warring presidents in direct dialogue.
23 September 2025
Zelenskyy met Trump for the sixth time this year on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly High-level Week in New York last month.
While details remain somewhat ambiguous, Trump has indicated potential US air support to European forces in Ukraine under a post-conflict framework.
13:42 GMT+2
Zelenskyy in US since Thursday, meeting defence representatives ahead of White House talks
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Washington on Thursday ahead of his White House summit with Trump.
“Today, I am having meetings with representatives of defense companies – producers of powerful weapons that can definitely strengthen our protection,” he said in a post on X.
“Tomorrow, a meeting with President Trump is scheduled – and we expect that the momentum of curbing terror and war that succeeded in the Middle East will help to end Russia’s war against Ukraine.”
Zelenskyy is widely expected to appeal to Trump for long-range Tomahawk missiles which would enable Ukraine to strike military targets deeper inside Russia.
Already in Washington.
Today, I am having meetings with representatives of defense companies – producers of powerful weapons that can definitely strengthen our protection. In particular, we will discuss additional supplies of air defense systems. I will also meet today with… pic.twitter.com/MRFmPARkq1
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) October 16, 2025
13:32 GMT+2
Trump says he will meet Putin in Hungary in bid to resolve Ukraine war
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday night that he would meet with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin in Hungary to try to resolve the war in Ukraine, but a date has yet to be determined.
Trump spoke with Putin by phone on Thursday as he considers Ukraine’s push for long-range missiles.
That call came ahead of Trump’s meeting at the White House with Zelenskyy, who has been pressing the US president to sell Kyiv Tomahawk missiles that would allow Ukrainian forces to strike deeper into Russian territory.
You can read more about that in the article below.
Trump says he will meet Putin in Hungary in bid to resolve Ukraine war
With a fragile Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal holding in Gaza, Trump said he’s now turning his attention to bringing the war in Ukraine to an end.
14:16 GMT+2
Budapest memorandum 2.0?
The location of the upcoming meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin has a deeply symbolic meaning for Ukraine, as it brings back the memories of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum.
In December 1994, leaders of the US, the UK and Russia met in Budapest to pledge security assurances to Ukraine in connection with its accession to the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as a non-nuclear state.
Ukraine agreed to relinquish its nuclear arsenal — then the third-largest in the world — which it inherited from the Soviet Union and to transfer all of the some 1,900 nuclear warheads to Russia for dismantling.
But 20 years later in 2014, Russia invaded Ukraine, illegally annexing the Crimean Peninsula and occupying large territories in the east of the country before starting its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Many still argue that Russia wouldn’t have attacked the country if Ukraine still had nuclear weapons.
Last year, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the European Council that apart from joining NATO, Ukraine’s only option for defence would be nuclear weapons.
“Who gave up nuclear weapons? All of them? Ukraine. Who is fighting today? Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said in October.
He then had to clarify and reassure partners that Ukraine has never discussed preparing to produce any nuclear weapons or to build a nuclear bomb.
Does Ukraine really want to go nuclear?
Ukraine’s Zelenskyy clarified that Ukraine is not pursuing nuclear weapons but stressed the need for NATO membership for security amidst Russian aggression.
