(Washington) Volodymyr Zelensky is received on Friday by Donald Trump, whom he will try to convince to deliver Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine, while the American president displays a newfound closeness with Vladimir Putin.
The Ukrainian president arrived around 1:30 p.m. for his third visit to the White House since the Republican’s return to power.
He was greeted by President Trump, with whom he briefly posed for photographers before returning inside the building.
Mr Zelensky said Russian President Vladimir Putin was “not ready” for peace, with Mr Trump saying the opposite.
“I think President Putin wants to end the war,” said Donald Trump while receiving his Ukrainian counterpart.
During their first interview in February, Donald Trump brutally told Volodymyr Zelensky that he “did not hold the cards”. The second, in August, had been much more cordial.
This time, the Ukrainian president arrives at the White House the day after a long phone call between the American president and Vladimir Putin, who agreed to meet soon in Budapest.
The Russian leader took advantage of this exchange to warn that a delivery of Tomahawk missiles would “significantly harm” the Russian-American relationship.
The American president, questioned Thursday after his conversation with Vladimir Putin, was very reserved. “We cannot deplete (the Tomahawk reserves of) our own country,” he said.
1600 kilometers
Volodymyr Zelensky, who arrived in Washington on Thursday, met with representatives of the American manufacturer of the Tomahawk and Patriot missile systems, to discuss, among other things, the “prospect of joint Ukrainian-American production”.
The BGM-109 Tomahawk flies up to 1,600 kilometers, at 880 km/h, a few dozen meters from the ground.
PHOTO ARCHIVES REUTERS/KENNETH MOLL
Tomahawk missile launched from US warship
These missiles would allow Ukraine to strike deep into Russia, at a time when Moscow, at the start of winter, is intensifying its attacks on enemy energy infrastructure.
On Friday, Russia also claimed the capture of three Ukrainian villages in the regions of Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk (East).
The American president said Thursday that he hoped to “put an end to this “inglorious” war” during his meeting with Vladimir Putin, scheduled according to him “in the next two weeks.” »
The American and Russian leaders had a “very productive” meeting on Thursday, judged the 79-year-old Republican, while Moscow welcomed an “extremely frank and confident” exchange.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov, however, noted on Friday that “many questions” needed to be resolved before the meeting in Budapest.
Arrest warrant
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjarto assured that the Russian president could make the trip without incident. Vladimir Putin is under arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes, but Hungary has announced its withdrawal from the ICC, which will be effective on June 2, 2026.
The last summit between the two presidents, on August 15 in Alaska, ended without any concrete prospect of peace.
PHOTO DREW ANGERER, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE ARCHIVES
Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, during the bilateral summit last August
This failure irritated Donald Trump, who said he was “very disappointed” with Vladimir Putin and who even felt that Russia could lose the war.
However, the American president has not carried out his threats of heavy sanctions against Russia.
Donald Trump broke the isolation in which Western powers had maintained Moscow since the Russian invasion of February 2022 and questioned the military aid granted to Ukraine by his predecessor Joe Biden.
Refusing to attribute responsibility for the deadliest conflict in Europe since the Second World War, the American president sends Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky back to back.
“They don’t get along very well, those two,” he remarked Thursday, in a casual tone.
